Tag Archives: znga

Britney Spears Game Lifts Glu, But Big Publishers Winning

Mobile video game publisher Glu Mobile ( GLUU ) got a rise Thursday from the release of a new game featuring pop singer Britney Spears. However, it’s the big game publishers like Activision Blizzard ( ATVI ) and Electronic Arts ( EA ) that are winning in the mobile games market. Glu saw its low-priced, micro-cap stock rise 7% to 2.50 in afternoon trading on the stock market today , on the release of its latest celebrity game: “Britney Spears: American Dream.” The San Francisco-based company needs another hit along the lines of its genre-defining game, “Kim Kardashian: Hollywood,” to regain its footing. Glu’s sales have fallen on a year-over-year basis for three straight quarters. And the declines are accelerating — from a 2% decrease in Q3 2015 to a 16% drop in Q4 and a 22% fall in Q1. Glu has a miserable IBD Relative Strength Rating of 3, meaning it is in the bottom 3% for performance among all stocks over the last 12 months. Another publicly traded maker of mobile games, San Francisco-based Zynga ( ZNGA ), faces similar challenges. Its sales have stalled the last two quarters — falling 4% year over year in Q4 and increasing just 2% in Q1. Zynga is known for games such as “Words With Friends” and “Zynga Poker.” Like Glu, Zynga stock is low valued, trading near 2.50 and up a fraction Thursday afternoon. Meanwhile, PC and console game giants Activision Blizzard and Electronic Arts reported solid gains in their mobile game initiatives in the March quarter. Activision stock jumped to near its all-time high after the company posted  better-than-expected first-quarter results on May 5. The Santa Monica, Calif.-based company credited the upside surprise to newly acquired mobile game publisher King Digital Entertainment and its hot titles like “Candy Crush Jelly Saga.” Activision completed its purchase of King on Feb. 23. In Q1, King’s monthly active users rose 3% to 463 million from the prior quarter. King has had three of the top 15 highest-grossing titles in the U.S. mobile app stores for nine quarters in a row. EA stock climbed to a record high of 77.15 after the Redwood City, Calif.-based company posted better-than-expected results for its fiscal Q4 on May 10. Shares were down 1.5% Thursday afternoon, near 73.50. EA was the No. 1 most-downloaded mobile game publisher in 2015, with such popular games as “Madden NFL Mobile” and “Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes.”

After Hours: Sturm Ruger, Texas Roadhouse, Apple Supplier IDT

Earnings reports from Sturm Ruger ( RGR ),  Apple ( AAPL ) supplier Integrated Device Tech ( IDTI ),   Monolithic Power Systems ( MPWR ), Texas Roadhouse ( TXRH ) and Qualys ( QLYS ) headline Monday’s after-hours session. Sturm Ruger Sturm Ruger reported $1.21 in diluted Q1 per-share earnings, a 49% spike, on a 26% revenue increase to $173.1 million, far above consensus views for 96 cents EPS on $147.7 million in sales. The gunmaker also declared a 48-cent per-share dividend, up from 35 cents in the prior quarter and 25 cents in the quarter before that. Sturm Ruger stock rose more than 4% in late trading to above 70 after closing up 5.5% in regular trade on the stock market today . That would put Ruger’s shares above their 50-day moving average for the first time since Ruger and rival Smith & Wesson ( SWHC ) crashed April 4 on fears of slowing gun sales. Smith & Wesson also rallied late after closing up 4.6%. IBD’s Take: How does Sturm Ruger stock stack up vs. objective targets and key rivals? Find out at IBD Stock Checkup Integrated Device Tech The Apple Watch supplier’s Q4 non-GAAP EPS popped 24% to 36 cents, surpassing analyst expectations for 33 cents but growth slowed for a fourth straight quarter. Revenue climbed 20% to $189.4 million, topping views for $187 million. Sales growth snapped a three-quarter string of deceleration. Integrated Device Tech shares rose 2% late after closing the regular session up 2.1%. Meanwhile, Apple shares closed down 0.1%, its eighth straight loss . Monolithic Power Systems Chip designer Monolithic Power said Q1 non-GAAP EPS jumped 22% to 45 cents, beating projections for 44 cents. Revenue grew 15% to $84.5 million vs. estimates for $83 million. For Q2, the Sony ( SNE ) PlayStation 4 chipmaker sees revenue in the range of $91 million-$95 million, with the $93 million midpoint ahead of views for $91.5 million. Monolithic Power shares were little changed in late trade after rising 1.8% in the regular session. Texas Roadhouse Texas Roadhouse reported Q1 EPS of 50 cents a share, including a 5-cent pre-tax charge. Wall Street had estimated 54 cents. Revenue increased 12% to $515.6 million, slightly below views for $515.9 million. Comparable sales grew 4.6% at company restaurants and 3.1% at franchise locations. Shares closed the regular session up 3.3% and jumped more than 4% late. IBD’s Take: How appetizing is Texas Roadhouse’s stock and how does it compare to rivals? Find out at IBD Stock Checkup Qualys Cloud-based security and compliance solutions provider Qualys ( QLYS ) notched a 40% per-share profit gain in Q1, with 21 cents a share on 23% revenue growth to $46.2 million. That topped estimates for 15 cents EPS and $45.1 million in revenue. For Q2, Qualys expects EPS of 15-17 cents, below views for 18 cents a share. The midpoint of revenue outlook of $47.6 million-$48.3 million — $47.95 million — is a hair above analyst forecasts for $47.91 million. For 2016, Qualys said it continues to see $195.6 million-$198.6 million in sales and 74-79 cents EPS, vs. views for $197 million in revenue and 77 cents EPS. The company also announced the appointment of Zynga ( ZNGA ) alum Melissa Fisher as its new CFO. Shares fell 4% late after rising 5.5% during the regular session. Anadarko Petroleum Anadarko Petroleum ( APC ) reported an adjusted Q1 loss of $1.12 a share vs. estimates for a loss of $1.16 a share. Revenue fell to $1.675 billion vs. views for $1.81 billion. Shares fell nearly 2% late after closing down 1.5%.

Qualys Q1 Tops, But Stock Falls Late On EPS Outlook; Appoints CFO

Qualys ( QLYS ) stock toppled late Monday after the cybersecurity firm beat Q1 expectations but missed current-quarter earnings views and announced the appointment of former Zynga exec Melissa Fisher as CFO. Fisher succeeds Don McCauley, who in January announced his resignation, effective March 1. Besides CFO, Fisher served as an executive in financial planning and analysis, investor relations and treasury roles at social-gaming firm Zynga ( ZNGA ). Qualys stock was down more than 3.5% in after-hours trading after the company released its earnings report. For Q1, Qualys reported a record $46.2 million in sales and 21 cents earnings per share minus items, both ahead of the consensus estimates of 16 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. Sales and EPS were up a respective 23% and 40% vs. the year-earlier quarter, vs. the consensus for $45.1 million and 15 cents. Results crushed the firm’s earlier view for $44.7 million to $45.4 million in sales and EPS ex items of 14-16 cents. For the current quarter, Qualys guided to $47.6 million to $48.3 million in sales and 15-17 cents EPS ex items, up 20% and flat, respectively, from the year-ago quarter. Sales met at the midpoint, but EPS missed analysts’ model for 18 cents. Qualys stock is down 21.5% for the year.