
GME$24.70▲ 2.4%$74.4 million later, Ryan Cohen owns a smaller slice of GameStop than in January
GameStop chief executive Ryan Cohen bought 700,000 more shares on Oct. 2, his filings show. In September, GameStop swapped debt for about 55.5 million new shares and cash, which cut his stake to 8.3% without a trade.
KeyVex News··5 min readFact-checked against 28 public records
KeyVex News··5 min readFact-checked against 28 public records
GME$24.70▲ 2.4%Close, Oct. 2. Prices from Tiingo.The short versionTap to readTap to close
- When a big shareholder buys more stock, their share of the company usually grows. GameStop chief executive Ryan Cohen has bought 3.3 million more GameStop shares since Sept. 10.
- His share shrank anyway: 9.3% in January, 8.9% on Oct. 2. In between, GameStop swapped $1.4 billion of its debt, mostly for new shares: about 55.5 million of them.
- That is arithmetic: new shares make each old share a smaller slice of the company. GameStop's new shares were about 17 times what Cohen has bought since Sept. 10.
- Cohen takes no salary or cash bonus, GameStop's May proxy says. In it, a document sent to shareholders before their vote, the board wrote that his financial interests are "tied entirely" to his GameStop shares.
- His 8.9% counts 3.7 million shares he could buy with warrants at $32.00 each. They expire Oct. 30.
The purchase: Ryan Cohen, GameStop's chairman and chief executive, bought 700,000 more of its shares on Oct. 2, his fourth day of buying since Sept. 10, his filings show.13D/AForm 4 Before that, they show no purchases since Jan. 21.13D/A His filings include a Schedule 13D, the report a big shareholder must keep up to date as their stake changes.13D/A
The stake: The new filing puts Cohen at 8.9% of GameStop. In January, after his last purchase before this run, his filings put him at 9.3%.13D/A13D/A So about $74.4 million later, by KeyVex's math from his Form 4s, he owns a smaller share of the company than he did in January.Form 4Form 4Form 4Form 4
The shares: The difference comes from GameStop itself. On Sept. 3 it closed a swap of $1.4 billion of convertible notes, debt that can turn into stock. Noteholders got about 55.5 million new shares and $358.4 million in cash.10-Q That day Cohen's stake fell to 8.3% with no trade, his filing shows.13D/A The new shares were about 17 times what he has bought since.Swap data
GameStop's stock and the story's key datesDaily close, Jan. 2 to Oct. 2, 2026 ▲ 19.8%Show chartHide chart
How a debt swap shrank Cohen's slice
GameStop sold $1.5 billion of convertible notes due 2030 in April 2025, and $2.7 billion due 2032 that June. The notes pay no interest.10-Q On Aug. 2, it agreed with some holders to swap about $1.4 billion of them for stock. The share count was to depend in part on GameStop's average price over 35 trading days starting Aug. 3.8-K
Under the original terms, the swap "retires this debt without the use of cash," GameStop said on Aug. 3.8-K On Aug. 31 it changed the terms. It ended the pricing period early and paid the rest in cash, which fixed the new share count. GameStop said it expected to pay the cash from cash on hand.8-K GameStop said the swap cut its long-term debt to about $2.8 billion.Q2 release
GameStop had 449.1 million shares outstanding on Aug. 1 and 504.5 million on Sept. 3.10-Q Cohen's filings measure his stake against that larger count.13D/A Against the January count, 448.0 million shares, his stake had risen to 9.2% and then 9.3%.13D/A13D/AStake data
View the data
| Date of the event each amendment reports, 2026 | Cohen's stake, as his filing reports it |
|---|---|
| Oct. 2 | 8.9% |
| Sept. 29 | 8.8% |
| Sept. 21 | 8.7% |
| Sept. 10 | 8.5% |
| Sept. 3 | 8.3% |
| Jan. 21 | 9.3% |
| Jan. 20 | 9.2% |
Each point is the stake an amendment reports for the date of its event. The Sept. 3 drop came with no trade. Amendment No. 19, filed Sept. 29, corrected No. 18's total purchase price and reported no new trades. Source: Ryan Cohen's Schedule 13D amendments.
What the company said about new shares
In May, GameStop's proxy statement asked shareholders to raise its authorized shares, the most it may issue, to 2.5 billion, from 1 billion. On July 7, they approved it, 231.7 million shares to 104.6 million.8-K The board's letter in the proxy said a reserve of authorized shares would let GameStop act decisively when the right opportunity arose. Before that, it said:DEF 14A
We view our equity as precious and do not intend to issue new shares lightly.
The same proxy listed about 191 million shares already reserved for converting the 2030 and 2032 notes, so the notes in the swap could already turn into stock. Beyond those reserved shares, it said, GameStop had no binding agreements to issue any of the additional authorized shares.DEF 14A
What Cohen bought
Cohen bought 1 million shares on Sept. 10 and 1.15 million on Sept. 21. He added 450,000 on Sept. 29 and 700,000 on Oct. 2.Form 4Form 4Form 4Form 4 His stake rose to 8.5%, 8.7%, 8.8% and 8.9% along the way, his amendments show.13D/A13D/A13D/A13D/A
His average prices rose from about $20.38 to $24.41. None of the four Form 4s, the reports insiders file when they trade, marks the trades as part of a preset trading plan.Form 4Form 4Form 4Form 4 He paid with personal funds, which can include margin loans from brokerage firms, his filings say.13D/A
New shares from the swap, against Cohen's buyingShow chartHide chart
The swap figure is GameStop's own estimate, "approximately 55.5 million." GameStop's outstanding shares rose 55.4 million from Aug. 1 to Sept. 3. Sources: GameStop's Aug. 31 release and Form 10-Q; Cohen's Form 4s and Schedule 13D amendments.
How Cohen is paid
Cohen "does not draw a salary, take a cash bonus, or receive time-vested stock," GameStop's board wrote in the proxy. "His financial interests are tied entirely to the value of the GameStop shares he already owns," it said.DEF 14A
The board had proposed an option award that paid only if GameStop's market value more than doubled to a sustained $20 billion and the company met cumulative earnings targets.DEF 14A On June 23, GameStop withdrew it at Cohen's request. He wanted the company's leaders focused on its operating performance and its proposed purchase of eBay, the filing said.DEFA14A
GameStop's governance has drawn criticism on the record. GameStop had proposed buying eBay for $125 a share.10-Q On May 12, eBay's board, the target of that bid, called the proposal "neither credible nor attractive." Among the factors it weighed, it listed "GameStop's governance and executive incentives," without elaborating in the letter.eBay 8-K In June, the City of Pontiac Reestablished General Employees' Retirement System sued Cohen, four other directors and GameStop in Delaware, seeking, among other things, to block the vote on adding 1.5 billion authorized shares, GameStop disclosed. GameStop said the claim was without merit.DEFA14A
GameStop's shareholders have now authorized up to 2.5 billion shares. On Sept. 3, 504.5 million were outstanding.8-K10-Q
Also in the filings
These filings bear on neither Cohen's stake nor the swap. Directors Larry Cheng, Jim Grube, Alan Attal and Nat Turner also reported buying GameStop shares from Sept. 8 to Oct. 1, from 5,000 to 55,000 shares on each Form 4 cited here.Form 4Form 4Form 4Form 4 On Oct. 1, two GameStop officers, Mark Robinson and Daniel Moore, each filed notice of a sale of about 7,300 shares. Both notices say the shares were sold to cover taxes on vesting stock units, not as a discretionary trade.Form 144Form 144
What to watch
GameStop's warrants expire at 5 p.m. New York time. Each lets its holder buy one share for $32.00 in cash. Cohen holds 3,734,784 of them.
GameStop's fiscal year ends. It forecasts adjusted EBITDA, a measure of operating profit, above $650 million.
About $1.1 billion of GameStop's convertible notes come due.
About $1.7 billion more come due.
The paper trail
Ryan Cohen's Schedule 13D amendments and GameStop's filings on the note swap, Jan. 21 through Oct. 2, 2026, with the time EDGAR accepted each one (Eastern).
| Filed (ET) | Form | Filer | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan. 21, 4:01 p.m. | 13D/A | Ryan Cohen | No. 14: bought 500,000 shares at $21.6010 on Jan. 21. Stake 9.3%. |
| Aug. 3, 6:12 a.m. | 8-K | GameStop | Agrees to swap about $1.4 billion of convertible notes for stock. |
| Aug. 31, 6:23 a.m. | 8-K | GameStop | Swap amended: about 55.5 million shares and $358.4 million in cash. |
| Sept. 3, 6:42 p.m. | 13D/A | Ryan Cohen | No. 15: no trades in 60 days. Stake 8.3% of 504.5 million shares. |
| Sept. 9, 4:06 p.m. | 10-Q | GameStop | 504,500,990 shares outstanding on Sept. 3. |
| Sept. 10, 5:54 p.m. | 13D/A | Ryan Cohen | No. 16: bought 1,000,000 shares at $20.3759. Stake 8.5%. |
| Sept. 21, 5:03 p.m. | 13D/A | Ryan Cohen | No. 17: bought 1,150,680 shares at $22.9375. Stake 8.7%. |
| Sept. 29, 4:57 p.m. | 13D/A | Ryan Cohen | No. 18: bought 450,000 shares at $23.4753 and $23.4499. Stake 8.8%. |
| Sept. 29, 6:46 p.m. | 13D/A | Ryan Cohen | No. 19: corrects No. 18's total purchase price, to about $185.5 million from $195.5 million. No new trades. |
| Oct. 2, 4:56 p.m. | 13D/A | Ryan Cohen | No. 20: bought 700,000 shares at $24.4061. Stake 8.9%. |
Sources
30 sources, 28 of them public records
Public records
- Ryan Cohen, Schedule 13D Amendment No. 20 (GameStop)SEC EDGAR · Oct. 2, 2026
- Ryan Cohen, Schedule 13D Amendment No. 19 (GameStop)SEC EDGAR · Sept. 29, 2026
- Ryan Cohen, Schedule 13D Amendment No. 18 (GameStop)SEC EDGAR · Sept. 29, 2026
- Ryan Cohen, Schedule 13D Amendment No. 17 (GameStop)SEC EDGAR · Sept. 21, 2026
- Ryan Cohen, Schedule 13D Amendment No. 16 (GameStop)SEC EDGAR · Sept. 10, 2026
- Ryan Cohen, Schedule 13D Amendment No. 15 (GameStop)SEC EDGAR · Sept. 3, 2026
- Ryan Cohen, Schedule 13D Amendment No. 13 (GameStop)SEC EDGAR · Jan. 20, 2026
- Ryan Cohen, Schedule 13D Amendment No. 14 (GameStop)SEC EDGAR · Jan. 21, 2026
- Form 4, Ryan CohenSEC EDGAR · Oct. 2, 2026
- Form 4, Ryan CohenSEC EDGAR · Sept. 29, 2026
- Form 4, Ryan CohenSEC EDGAR · Sept. 21, 2026
- Form 4, Ryan CohenSEC EDGAR · Sept. 10, 2026
- Form 4, Lawrence ChengSEC EDGAR · Sept. 8, 2026
- Form 4, James GrubeSEC EDGAR · Sept. 9, 2026
- Form 4, Alain AttalSEC EDGAR · Sept. 10, 2026
- Form 4, Nat TurnerSEC EDGAR · Oct. 1, 2026
- GameStop Corp., Form 8-K: Items 1.01 and 3.02 (note exchange agreements)SEC EDGAR · Aug. 3, 2026
- GameStop Corp., Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1: private exchange of $1.4 billion of convertible notesSEC EDGAR · Aug. 3, 2026
- GameStop Corp., Form 8-K: amended exchange agreements and preliminary resultsSEC EDGAR · Aug. 31, 2026
- GameStop Corp., Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.2: amendment to the convertible notes exchangeSEC EDGAR · Aug. 31, 2026
- GameStop Corp., Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1: second-quarter 2026 resultsSEC EDGAR · Sept. 8, 2026
- GameStop Corp., Form 10-Q for the quarter ended Aug. 1, 2026SEC EDGAR · Sept. 9, 2026
- GameStop Corp., definitive proxy statement (DEF 14A)SEC EDGAR · May 22, 2026
- GameStop Corp., proxy supplement No. 2 (DEFA14A): CEO award withdrawn; notice of litigationSEC EDGAR · June 23, 2026
- GameStop Corp., Form 8-K: Items 5.03 and 5.07 (annual meeting results)SEC EDGAR · July 8, 2026
- Form 144, Mark RobinsonSEC EDGAR · Oct. 1, 2026
- Form 144, Daniel MooreSEC EDGAR · Oct. 1, 2026
- eBay Inc., Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.2: board letter rejecting GameStop's proposalSEC EDGAR · May 12, 2026
Data
- End-of-day prices for GME, and for SPY and QQQ on the chart (Tiingo)KeyVex · through Oct. 2, 2026
- The chart's Filings layer: KeyVex's Congress trade, insider trade, Form 144, 8-K and lobbying records for GMEKeyVex · through Oct. 2, 2026
How we got these numbers
- Prices are end-of-day closes as traded, not adjusted for dividends. Daily moves are close to close. GameStop split its stock 4-for-1 in July 2022; closes before then are adjusted for the split. Every GameStop close in the chart's Story range is in its data table. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 lines follow SPY and QQQ, rebased to GameStop's close at the start of the range shown. The Filings switch shows the filing markers from KeyVex's GameStop page, a selection of congressional trades, insider trades, Form 144 notices, 8-Ks and lobbying filings: not every filing, and not only those tied to this story.
- Cohen's spending since Sept. 10 is the sum of shares times the weighted average price on each of his four Form 4s: $74,417,689. It matches the change in the total purchase price his Schedule 13D amendments report, from about $128.2 million in January to about $202.6 million on Oct. 2. Those totals exclude brokerage commissions.
- Stake percentages are as Cohen's filings report them. They count 3,734,784 shares he could buy with warrants, on top of the shares outstanding: 448.0 million in the January filings and 504.5 million since Sept. 3. Without the warrants, his 41.6 million shares were 8.3% of the 504.5 million outstanding on Sept. 3, by KeyVex's math.
- "About 17 times" divides GameStop's estimate of about 55.5 million new shares by the 3,300,680 Cohen bought from Sept. 10 to Oct. 2.




