Why Guidance Did Not Hold Back Electronic Arts Earnings

By Chris Lange Updated Jan 13, 9:36AM EST · Published May 10, 4:28PM EDT

Why Guidance Did Not Hold Back Electronic Arts Earnings — © Thinkstock

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) released its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings report after the markets closed on Tuesday. The company has $0.50 in earnings per share (EPS) on $924 million in revenue versus Thomson Reuters consensus estimates that called for $0.42 in EPS on $888.79 million in revenue. The same period from last year had $0.39 in EPS on $896.00 million in revenue.

During this quarter, EA was ranked as the #1 publisher in the Western World on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles for fiscal year 2016, according to EA estimates and the company’s available sources.

Also over 54 million unique players engaged with EA Sports console titles during the 2016 fiscal year, an increase of 65% from last year.

The Star Wars Battlefront franchise expanded its player base as more than 15% of Star Wars Battlefront players were new to the EA ecosystem. Separately, this franchise sold over 14 million units in fiscal 2016.

In terms of guidance, the company expects to have a net loss of $0.05 per share on $640 million in revenue for the fiscal first quarter. There are consensus estimates that call for $0.18 in EPS on $738.53 million in revenue at the same time.

Andrew Wilson, CEO of Electronic Arts, commented:

Fiscal 2016 was a phenomenal year for Electronic Arts as we connected hundreds of millions of players to great new games, and helped them connect with each other through rich and dynamic live services. The year ahead is packed with excitement. Fans are thrilled with the intense action and epic scale of Battlefield 1, our EA SPORTS titles will take major leaps in innovation, and we’ll bring new experiences from our most popular brands to more players on more devices.

The company had operating cash flow of $396 million at the end of this quarter compared to $198 million in the same period last year. On the books, cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments totaled $3.83 billion at the end of the quarter compared to $3.02 billion at the end of the previous fiscal year.

Shares of Electronics closed Tuesday at $64.54. The stock has a consensus analyst price target of $81.50 and a 52-week trading range of $53.01 to $76.92. Following the release of the earnings report, the stock was up 6.6% at $68.80 in the after-hours trading session.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.