Take-Two shares take a hit following news of Dan Houser’s exit

Take-Two shares took a hit on Wednesday following the news that Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser will leave the Grand Theft Auto maker next month.

The publisher’s share price peaked at $127.74 during trading on Tuesday, prior to that evening’s announcement that Houser would be leaving Take-Two subsidiary Rockstar.

On Wednesday, the first full day after the news broke, Take-Two’s share price dropped to as low as $119.31 (down 6.6% from Tuesday’s high), before closing at $120.76.

In a statement published on Tuesday, Take-Two said that following an “extended break” beginning in the spring of 2019, VP of creative Houser will leave the company on March 11, 2020.

“We are extremely grateful for his contributions,” it said. “Rockstar Games has built some of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful game worlds, a global community of passionate fans and an incredibly talented team, which remains focused on current and future projects.”

Houser, who co-founded Rockstar in 1998 alongside his brother Sam, Terry Donovan and Jamie King, has overseen virtually all the company’s games for the past 20 years.

Rockstar’s most recent titles, Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2, have alone sold a combined 150 million units.

Take-Two said this week that Sam Houser’s role at Rockstar president remains unchanged.

The company may provide further comment on the situation at Rockstar when it reports its third quarter financial results on Thursday evening.