Electronic Arts Q3 Earnings Highlights: Sales Miss, EPS Beat, Madden And Soccer Games Power Through

Video game company Electronic Arts Inc EA reported third-quarter financial results after market close Tuesday.

Here are the key highlights.

What Happened: Electronic Arts reported third-quarter net bookings of $2.366 billion, which was up 1% year-over-year. The net bookings came in shy of a Street consensus estimate of $2.40 billion according to data from Benzinga Pro.

The company reported adjusted earnings per share of $2.96, which beat a Street consensus estimate of $2.93.

Net revenue was $1.945 billion in the third quarter.

Live Services and other net bookings hit a record $1.712 billion, which was up 3% year-over-year. The company said live services and other net bookings represented 73% of the business on a trailing 12-month basis.  

During the fourth quarter, "EA Sports FC" saw 7% year-over-year net bookings growth, which "outperformed expectations."

The company's Madden franchise saw net bookings growth of 5% year-over-year during the third quarter.

"Our incredible teams delivered a strong Q3, entertaining hundreds of millions of people across our portfolio, driving deep engagement and record live services," EA CEO Andrew Wilson said. "We remain focused on growing our biggest franchises and delivering new, innovative games and experiences for our global communities."

Related Link: What’s In Store For Electronic Arts This Earnings Season? Analyst Sees Growth In Live Services With Favorable Gross Margin

What's Next: The company said it expects fourth-quarter net bookings to be in the range of $1.625 billion to $1.925 billion. Guidance for earnings per share for the fourth quarter is a range of 20 cents to 68 cents.

For the full fiscal year, Electronic Arts expects net bookings to be in a range of $7.389 billion to $7.689 billion. Guidance for full-year earnings per share is a range of $4.21 to $4.68.

"We will continue to build upon the strength within our portfolio, while prioritizing investments in our largest opportunities for multi-year growth," EA CFO Stuart Canfield said.

EA Price Action: Electronic Arts shares were down 3.31% to $133 in after-hours trading Tuesday versus a 52-week trading range of $108.53 to $143.47.

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