Electronic Arts ( NASDAQ: EA ) is 1.4% lower after posting fiscal first-quarter earnings that were mostly in line with expectations but also issuing an outlook for the current quarter below analyst consensus.
Net bookings landed at $1.3B, a decline of 3% that was better than expected and which the company credited to its FIFA soccer game franchise and the successful launch of F1. (Net revenue rose, but so did its change in deferred net revenue.)
Net income rose to $311M from a year-ago $204M.
Meanwhile, the EA player network grew to nearly 600M active accounts at quarter-end. Among other highlights, FIFA Ultimate Team engagement rose nearly 40% (both in weekly and daily average players), and FIFA Mobile delivered record net bookings and record daily active users (up 10% sequentially).
“EA delivered strong results in Q1 with our growing player network deeply engaged in new games and live services,” said CEO Andrew Wilson. “Our expanding EA SPORTS portfolio and owned IP franchises continue to power resilience and longevity in our business."
For the fiscal year, it's reaffirmed guidance to net bookings of $7.9B-$8.1B, in line with expectations for $8B, and for GAAP earnings per share of $2.79-$2.87 and operating cash flow of $1.6B-$1.65B.
For the second quarter, though, it's expecting net bookings of $1.725B-$1.775B, below consensus for $1.87B, along with net income of $220M-$242M.
Conference call to come at 5 p.m. ET .
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EA dips 1% after current-quarter outlook falls short