Three months after accepting the position of CEO at the company, Michael K. Mauler has left GameStop, effective immediately. He cited personal reasons as the motivation behind stepping down, stressing it is not due to any disagreement with the company regarding its financial reporting, policies or practices or any potential fraud.
Mauler was promoted to chief executive officer at the company following a 16-year career. Before becoming CEO, he was working as executive vice president and president of the retailer’s 2,000-store international division. In his time he devoted more space to movie and video game character figurines and collectibles, a tactic that worked well.
Around the same time as the promotion, GameStop fired chief operating officer Tony Bartel and executive vice president of strategic business and brand development Michael Hogan. The company has been struggling on the American front lately according to Michael Pachter, managing director of Wedbush Securities.
“They never hit the numbers that they consistently talked about,” Pachter said. Last year, the mobile stores posted $75 million in operating profit, but the interest expense on the debt to purchase the stores was $57 million.“
Following the announcement, GameStop’s shared plummeted nearly 2 percent. The company has been struggling to excite its investors following disappointing earnings.
In the meantime, GameStop co-founder Daniel DeMatteo has been appointed as as interim CEO. He’s been CEO in the past and has held several board and executive roles since November 1996. DeMatteo will still serve as as executive chairman and director while the search for a permanent replacement has started.
While Mauler isn’t entitled to any severance, he does leave with 23,324 shares of restricted stock and accumulated dividends.
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