GameStop $GME ( ▲ 6.59% ) is getting a classic “insider confidence” pop.
CEO Ryan Cohen just bought $10.6M worth of company stock on Tuesday, picking up 500,000 shares at an average weighted price around $21.12. Shares were up nearly 2% in premarket trading Wednesday as investors reacted to the purchase.
Cohen is doubling down again
This wasn’t a symbolic buy.
Cohen now owns about 8.45% of GameStop’s shares outstanding, making him the largest individual holder and the second-largest owner overall behind Vanguard.
And this isn’t his first time doing this either: his last open-market purchase was April 3, 2025, and it was the exact same size, another 500,000 shares, at a slightly higher weighted price.
Why this matters: his pay is now tied to performance
GameStop recently rolled out a long-term compensation package for Cohen that ties his pay entirely to the company’s performance.
If approved, Cohen would earn options that let him buy shares at a discount, but only if GameStop hits escalating milestones tied to:
cumulative EBITDA
market cap targets
The first tranche alone requires GameStop to post bottom-line performance comparable to a normal strong stretch from the 2010s, while also reaching a market cap level it only reliably touched during the 2021 meme stock mania.
Not easy.
GameStop has been quietly improving the fundamentals
Cohen’s tenure has been defined by cost discipline and pushing growth in higher-margin areas like collectibles.
That shift is showing up in the numbers: GameStop has now posted positive operating cash flow for six straight quarters, which is a company record.
That’s not meme energy. That’s execution.
Not just Cohen: a board member also bought shares
It wasn’t only the CEO.
Board member Alain Attal also purchased about $251,000 in GameStop stock on Tuesday, which adds another small layer of “insiders are buying” fuel to the story.
Bottom line
Ryan Cohen just put $10.6M of his own money into GameStop again.
With his comp now directly tied to aggressive performance milestones, the buy reads like one message: he’s betting the turnaround narrative still has more runway.