GNC ends 2016 as worst year since IPO

New York

GNC Holdings limped to the finish of its worst year since it went public in 2011, and the vitamin retailer is leaving shareholders with little to get excited about in the next 12 months.

The company's shares have plunged by more than 64 per cent in 2016 as foot traffic fell at its more than 4,400 US stores, and customers cut down on buying vitamins and nutritional supplements.

Once a Wall Street darling, GNC's market value has dropped by about US$5 billion since its peak in 2013 as it battled slumping sales and aggressive competition from online sellers and Walmart Stores. Even after the decline, only one of the 10 analysts who follow the stock recommend buying it.

Interim chief executive officer Bob Moran, a board member who took the helm last July, is trying to turn around the operation. He is unifying GNC's pricing system to make it less confusing, rolling out promotions and boosting loyalty programmes in an attempt to relaunch the brand. The chain will also run its first-ever commercial during the Super Bowl in February, a bo…