(Reuters) -GameStop Corp reported first-quarter revenue that exceeded market expectations on Wednesday, as the video game retailer pivots toward a more online-focused model amid increasing competition from large retailers such as Walmart Inc and Amazon.com Inc.
Store closures during the COVID-19 pandemic affected GameStop’s physical retail business, for which it is primarily known. The company has been bolstering its online sales capabilities as shopping trends towards e-commerce accelerated during the pandemic.
The company‘s shares soared 687% last year as it was at the center of a battle between retail investors coordinating on online forums and Wall Street hedge funds that had taken short positions in GameStop, in what is called a “short-squeeze”.
Net sales were $1.38 billion in the quarter ended April 30, above analysts‘ average estimate of $1.32 billion, according to Refinitiv data.
Net loss widened to $157.9 million, or $2.08 per share, for the first quarter, from $66.8 million, or $1.01 per share, a year earlier.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)
