Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) stock was up 7% towards the end of the noon hour on January 31. Shares have climbed 21% in the month of January. The company released its third quarter results on the same day.
Digital net bookings over the past 12 months rose 18% year-over-year to $3.375 billion. EA’s FIFA property reported particularly impressive results in the third quarter. The FIFA community increased to 41 million players on consoles and FIFA Mobile posted 26 million new additions to its player base. Star Wars: Battlefront, which turned into a controversial property for EA, saw almost 70% of players log hours in the single-player campaign.
Digital net revenue grew to $780 million compared to $685 million in the prior year. In the three months ending December 31, 2017, EA recognized a $176 million incremental income tax expense due to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The company reported an overall net loss of $186 million in the third quarter.
For its fourth quarter and full-year forecast, EA is projecting net revenue of approximately $5.1 billion and net income of $1.01 billion.
EA should thrive on momentum from the 2018 FIFA World Cup in the summer of this year, which regularly boosts activity for FIFA property sales. Analysts are also eagerly anticipating its next Star Wars property after the creative issues faced that forced a delay of its original action-adventure launch.
