GameStop winnings are coming. Nobody knows what to expect.

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After two months of wild trading,

GameStop

will report results for its January quarter on Tuesday. What this means for the stock is anyone’s guess.

In a note on Thursday, Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter wrote that GameStop is “well positioned to be the main beneficiary of new console launches.” But he believes that stocks are traded at levels that are disconnected from the fundamentals. Although Pachter values ​​shares in Neutral, it has a target price of $ 16. GameStop shares rose 4.6% to $ 211 on Friday.

So far, many Americans know why. GameStop shares have been widely analyzed by Wall Street analysts, with shares falling around the price of a Happy Meal a year ago. He got an obscene short interest rate, which means that hedge funds line up to bet on a price drop. However, when short sellers outperform, positive news can send stocks higher as they rush to buy shares to close their bets in the face of the unlimited disadvantage.

In the second half of last year, Chewy co-founder Ryan Cohen joined the mix. He revealed a stake and later called for major changes. He raised his stake in December and joined the council in January with two associates.

Introducing the short interest in the action and the possibility for GameStop to find a second life as a game-focused e-commerce player, retailers on the Reddit WallStreetBets forum piled up in GameStop shares. The technical oddities of the options business, the short interest mentioned above and the newly discovered enthusiasm made the GameStop stock increase in January.

WallStreetBets reached the front pages of national newspapers, and bear hedge funds were set on fire. There has also been a debate about short selling as well as retailers’ access to financial markets after Robinhood and other brokers temporarily restricted the purchase of shares due to financial requirements from clearing houses.

GameStop shares have fallen around $ 40, but have risen again in the past month. Although GameStop announced a hunt for a new chief financial officer, some promising e-commerce-focused jobs and a Cohen-led steering committee to guide its transformation into a technology company, it did not provide an update on its sales or outlook. since then the launch of holiday sales on January 11, which signaled a disappointing December.

For the fourth fiscal quarter, Wedbush analyst Pachter expects sales of $ 2.3 billion, comparable sales up 4.8% year-on-year and adjusted earnings of $ 1.38 per share. He notes that GameStop’s holiday sales report indicated that sales at the same store fell year-on-year in December and lagged behind positive industry data from NPD. He notes that the company has lost market share in recent times compared to competitors due to a shift to internet spending.

BofA Global Research analyst Curtis Nagle wrote in a note on Friday that he expects a disappointing, albeit profitable, quarter. He wrote that while recent announcements about Cohen and new hires are positive, in theory, there were no real details about the cost, timeline and impact on the gains of a change plan. He has a $ 10 price target with an Underperform rating, noting that the stock’s current valuation and historical multiples would involve pre-interest, tax, amortization and amortization gains of $ 3.5 billion, about four times the maximum Ebitda. 2015.

The Nagle note included an analysis of the impact of $ 1,400 direct payments on the stock, with the idea that retail investors will use their latest discounts on GameStop shares. His food is that “stimmies”, as he calls them, will not impact the GameStop stock in the future.

Of course, what analysts have said about GameStop’s actions has not had much of an impact on its recent moves. A positive update of the rotation plan could counteract the remaining bears in the short term. On the other hand, any comment on possible stock sales could be negative. Pachter expected the missing sellers to drop their bets, with the stock returning to more fundamental levels. That didn’t happen, he remarked.

“Activists control the company’s board, and chief activist Ryan Cohen, the founder of Chewy, plans to unveil a new strategy soon,” Pachter added. “When the new strategy is revealed and we can evaluate it, we will revise our estimates and PT.”

Write to Connor Smith at [email protected]