EA Shares Rise Despite Earnings Miss
Game maker Electronic Arts’ fourth-quarter earnings are in, hitting its revenue but missing its expected EPS.
EA ended the quarter with earnings of 55 cents per share on revenue of $1.04 billion, coming in below analysts’ expectations of 58 cents per share but nailing the $1.04 billion consensus.
“As we enter a new fiscal year, EA is well-positioned for dynamic growth on next-generation consoles, PCs, and mobile platforms” EA executive chairman Larry Probst said in a canned statement. “With world-class games, a rapidly growing digital business, and top-notch creative talent, we are excited about EA’s strategy for FY 2014 and beyond.”
Despite the earnings miss, however, the Street reacted positively. Shares of EA were up about seven percent in after-hours trading at $19.70.
It could be the reminder that EA and Disney announced a multi-year agreement yesterday in which EA will develop Star Wars games across multiple platforms.
“Our agreement unlocks a whole new future of Star Wars games that will span consoles, PCs, tablets, mobile, and more,” EA President of Labels Frank Gibeau said in a statement.
Or perhaps it could be the strong performance in mobile markets — particularly with iOS devices, in which the company claims to be the top global publisher in 2013 thus far. The Simpsons: Tapped Out was the company’s strongest mobile performer, generating $50 million in revenue since the game’s launch last August.
Update: More subscriber details and information on titles published by EA.