Reuters
- Electronic Arts slipped by as much as 7.6% Wednesday after the company’s forecast for the fiscal fourth-quarter of 2021 disappointed investors.
- The game company on Monday reported a 5% increase in revenues, to $1.67 billion year-on-year.
- Electronic Arts is said it will bring back its college football game, which was last published in 2014, although there is still no release date set.
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Video game company Electronic Arts slipped by as much as 7.6% Wednesday after the company’s forecast for the fiscal fourth-quarter of 2021 disappointed Wall Street investors.
The Redwood City, California-based company on Monday reported $1.38 billion in revenue for the last quarter, higher than analysts’ estimates of $1.32 billion. Adjusted earnings, however, were forecast only at 98 cents, which is lower than Wall Street’s expected $1 per share average.
EA reported $0.72 per share for its third-quarter fiscal 2021 earnings, a 39% tumble year-on-year. Revenues did increase 5% to $1.67 billion compared to the same period.
The company attributed the rise in expenditure to the recent hiring spree on top of newly launched ventures, such as bringing back a football game that EA stopped publishing in 2014. The popular game will be called “EA Sports College Football,” according to ESPN, and still has no release date.
“It was a really strong game. It was a fan favorite game,” said company chief executive officer Andrew Wilson in the earnings call. “It sold tens of millions of units over its life. And we expect that it will continue to be a really strong fan-favorite game.”
Electronic Arts, which has more than 300 million registered players around the world, remains bullish for the year ahead.
"We are raising our net bookings outlook for the full year on the strength we continue to see in our business," company chief operating officer and chief financial officer Blake Jorgensen said. "Looking further ahead, even with the upside this year, we anticipate delivering growth in fiscal 2022, driven by the next Battlefield."
Battlefield is a game developed by Swedish company EA DICE and published by Electronic Arts.
Other games in the game maker's portfolio include EA SPORTS, FIFA, Apex Legends, The Sims, Madden NFL, Need for Speed, Titanfall, and Plants vs. Zombies.
