Baird Positive on Activision Blizzard (ATVI) as Mists of Pandaria Sales Hit 2.7M
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Up: 13 | Down: 14 | New: 11
Rating Summary:
22 Buy, 22 Hold, 0 Sell
Rating Trend: = Flat
Today's Overall Ratings:
Up: 13 | Down: 14 | New: 11
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This morning, Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI) announced that it has sold approximately 2.7 million units of World of Warcraft expansion pack Mists of Pandaria (MOP) in its first week. This was in line with Baird’s estimate of 3 million units for Q3.
"Importantly, the company also reported an increase in the global subscriber base of World of Warcraft above 10 million vs. 9.1 million reported in Q2, which notably is the first increase in subs since the last expansion pack (Cataclysm) in late 2010," noted analyst Brian Skorney.
"While Metacritic review scores for MOP are somewhat disappointing (83 vs. 90 for Cataclysm), we believe that MOP may be more successful for Blizzard in terms of user retention, as feedback suggests it is not as difficult to play as Cataclysm," added Skorney.
He expects solid third quarter results with good visibility for the fourth quarter. He also believes that while the video game industry is facing challenges, Activision Blizzard remains well position on a relative basis, with key holiday releases of Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 and Skylanders Giants.
Baird has an Outperform rating on Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI) and price target of $15.00.
For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Activision Blizzard click here. For more ratings news on Activision Blizzard click here.
Shares of Activision Blizzard closed at $11.23 yesterday.
"Importantly, the company also reported an increase in the global subscriber base of World of Warcraft above 10 million vs. 9.1 million reported in Q2, which notably is the first increase in subs since the last expansion pack (Cataclysm) in late 2010," noted analyst Brian Skorney.
"While Metacritic review scores for MOP are somewhat disappointing (83 vs. 90 for Cataclysm), we believe that MOP may be more successful for Blizzard in terms of user retention, as feedback suggests it is not as difficult to play as Cataclysm," added Skorney.
He expects solid third quarter results with good visibility for the fourth quarter. He also believes that while the video game industry is facing challenges, Activision Blizzard remains well position on a relative basis, with key holiday releases of Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 and Skylanders Giants.
Baird has an Outperform rating on Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI) and price target of $15.00.
For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Activision Blizzard click here. For more ratings news on Activision Blizzard click here.
Shares of Activision Blizzard closed at $11.23 yesterday.
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