GameStop CFO resigns

It has emerged that GameStop CFO Cathy Smith has resigned from the global games retailer after just six months in the role to take up the role of CFO at US retail giant Wal-Mart.

Current chief accounting officer Robert Lloyd, who has been at GameStop for 14 years, is to assume the role of interim CFO.

We view Ms. Smith’s departure with some caution given hershort tenure at the company,” Lazard Capital Markets analyst Colin Sebastian stated.

However, her departure isostensibly due to the Wal-Mart opportunity rather than to anyGameStop-specific financial issues.”

Like with all traditional games retailers, analysts remain cautious regarding their outlook for the sector, though Sebastian believes 2010 is proving solid for GameStop so far.

Latest checks indicate mixed industry trends, with ongoing traction forSony’s PS3, stable Xbox 360 trends, and supply constraints on Nintendo’sWii,” he added. We also note that EA title Dante’s Inferno appears to be off to aslow start at retail, while pre-order levels for Pokemon, God of War andFinal Fantasy are solid ahead of launch.

A solid core-gamer release lineup inMarch and April should provide a lift for GameStop’s business early in theyear. Key risks include competition, mixed industry sales trends, anddisintermediation from digital.”