GameStop CEO exiting with $170 million payday thanks to Reddit market frenzy

GameStop CEO George Sherman is set to collect nearly $170 million when he exits the company this summer after just over two years at the helm, a time the struggling retailer has racked up large losses.

When Sherman joined the company in April 2019, GameStop had fiscal-year sales of $8.3 billion and operating income of $310 million. Since then, sales have tumbled and earnings have evaporated. The company had $5 billion in sales in its latest fiscal quarter and an operating loss of $253 million.  Although the coronavirus pandemic walloped GameStop's business as it did other retailers, the company's sales and earnings were falling even before the health crisis. In all, GameStop has lost nearly $700 million during Sherman's tenure as CEO.