GameStop earnings: What to watch

GameStop will take the spotlight after the bell on Wednesday when the video game giant reports its second-quarter earnings. 

Analysts are expecting GameStop to report a second-quarter loss of 67 cents per share, versus a loss of $1.40 per share during the same period a year ago, and revenue of approximately $1.12 billion. 

The company remains popular among retail investors, with shares up over 900% year-to-date in the months following its "meme stock" status. 

In its first quarter for fiscal 2021, GameStop reported an adjusted net loss of $29.4 million, or 45 cents per share. It also saw a 25.1% year-over-year increase in net sales to $1.28 billion, despite a nearly 12% reduction in the company’s global store base due to "strategic de-densification efforts" and continued store closures across Europe due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Beyond the quarterly numbers, investors will be looking for an update on GameStop's e-commerce transformation from its leadership team.

Chewy.com founder Ryan Cohen, who amassed an approximately 13% stake in GameStop earlier this year, has remained tight-lipped about the company's plans, but has warned investors to "buckle up". 

"We are trying to do something that nobody in the retail space has ever done," Cohen said at the company's annual shareholder meeting in June.

Leading GameStop's transformation are Amazon veterans Matt Furlong and Mike Recupero, who replaced former CEO George Sherman and former chief financial officer Jim Bell over the summer. Other Amazon veterans rounding out GameStop's leadership team include Elliott Wilke, Jenna Owens and Matt Francis, who serve as GameStop's chief growth officer, operating officer and first chief technology officer, respectively. 

GameStop has also announced plans to open distribution centers in York, Pennsylvania, and Reno, Nevada, to help expand its North American fulfillment network. The 700,000-square-foot York facility is expected to be operational by the fourth quarter of 2021, while the 530,000-square-foot Reno facility is expected to be operational in 2022.

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Wedbush Securities has slapped the stock with a "underperform" rating ahead of its earnings announcement. 

While Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter believes GameStop is well positioned to return to profitability, he also emphasized that the rise in its share price is "completely disconnected from the fundamentals of the business."

GameStop executives will discuss the second-quarter earnings results on a conference call at 5 p.m. Wednesday.