Activision Blizzard After Raising Earnings Forecasts and Beating Estimates (ATVI)

Activision ATVI reported a Q1 EPS today of $0.13, five cents better than the Street's estimate of $0.08 and four cents better than the $0.09 EPS during the prior year. Activision also reported revenues of $755 million versus the Street estimate of $668 million. Although the stock hit levels over 4% higher than its closing price during regular market hours, it quickly retraced those levels on significant post-market volatility. At last check, shares were trading approximately 2% higher than its closing price during regular market hours. Robert Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, commented on the earnings. “Our record first-quarter performance was driven by digital sales and the continued strength of Activision Publishing's Call of Duty and Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft franchises. Digital content continues to represent a significant portion of our revenues and increased by about $100 million year over year, enabling us to deliver record first-quarter operating margins and earnings per share. The Call of Duty: Black Ops First Strike content pack shattered Xbox LIVE launch records, surpassing 1.4 million downloads in the first 24 hours alone, and Blizzard's Battle.net service continues to grow its service offerings. To date, Call of Duty: Black Ops players have logged more than 1.2 billion online hours of online gameplay." Kotick continued, “Interactive entertainment continues to see broader audience appeal and powerful positive trends in online gameplay and online distribution. Our incredibly talented people continue to lead in innovation and we continue to deliver the world's best games combined with strong financial performance.”