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Electronic Arts reported financials for its fiscal third quarter ended December 31 with results driven by its EA Sports FC.
EA said net bookings for the quarter were $2.366 billion, up 1% from a year ago. Live services and other net bookings for FYQ3 were $1.712 billion, up 3% from a year ago. On a trailing 12-month basis, live services were 73% of the business.
In the previous quarter, net bookings were $1.820 billion, up 4% from a year ago. The company’s stock is down 3.3% at $133.01 a share in after-hours trading.
EA Sports FC 24, outperformed expectations, delivering 7% net bookings growth against a prior year that included the World Cup.
“Our incredible teams delivered a strong Q3, entertaining hundreds of millions of people across our portfolio, driving deep engagement and record live services,” said Andrew Wilson, CEO of EA, in a statement. “We remain focused on growing our biggest franchises and delivering new, innovative games and experiences for our global communities.”
EA Sports Madden NFL grew net bookings by 5% from a year ago. Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, said in an email to GamesBeat that revenues were slightly below expectations (at $2.37 billion actual versus $2.4 billion consensus expected) and earnings per share of $2.96 a share versus expectations of $2.93 a share.
“Nothing special in there at all,” Pachter said. “No real news in there, other than that EA Sports FC grew 7% yoy and overall was pretty flat. That makes sense in the context of no Need for Speed this year.”
For the fourth quarter ending March 31, 2024, Pachter said EA guided to $1.625 billion to $1.925 billion in revenues, versus analyst consensus expectations of $1.83 billion. Earnings per share is expected to be $1.25 a share to $1.75 a share, versus expectations of $1.56 a share.
Game performance
EA said that EA Sports FC saw 1.7 billion total cross-play matches. The Sims 4 saw 1.8 billion hours played, up 30% from a year earlier. Apex Legends saw 47.9 million hours of Apex Legends Esports (ALGS) watched.
The EA Sports Madden NFL saw 6.4 million Super Bowls won. Battlefield 2042 saw 763 million total matches played, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor saw 4.8 billion enemies defeated.
In an analyst call, Wilson said, “I’m inspired by the opportunities ahead as we continue to execute our long-term strategy.”
Wilson said, “It was a strong Q3 as we continue to entertain hundreds of millions of players and fans around the world. Our exceptional teams created high-quality games and experiences across our broad
portfolio that drove deep engagement and record live services. This quarter, two of the world’s most celebrated interactive entertainment experiences — EA Sports FC and EA Sports Madden NFL — delivered phenomenal strength as sizable drivers of long-term growth.”
He said the the launch of EA Sports FC 24 has been a great success and has, once again, outperformed
EA’s expectations. He said FC 24 had the franchise’s biggest quarter ever, and he said FC Mobile also generated deep engagement with daily active users up by 29% year-over-year, while FC Online grew new players by 20% year-over-year.
Wilson said Madden in engaging more fans year over year, and he said in Q3, Madden’s net bookings grew and engagement with Ultimate Team increased 19%. Madden Mobile also saw an increase in players during the quarter, generating double-digit growth across the community.
Wilson also said the Battlefield 2042 community continues to grow, with total players up 17% year-overyear, and Season 6 live services driving strong engagement with weekly average users up 37% year-over-year.
Apex Legends is in its fifth year but in the quarter it did not meet competitive expectations, said Stuart Canfield, CFO of EA, in the analyst call.
Wilson said, “Over the past few months, we have listened closely to our community, and have deployed new features, new styles of play, and new content. We have also implemented tools to better understand day-to-day game performance. In Q3, our new modes drove improved engagement, and the early impact of our new content in the current quarter is promising. To generate future growth, we are focused on entertaining core players and engaging new players by investing in geographic expansion, innovating in the game economy, and making it easier than ever for players to jump into our gameplay.”
Expectations
For the third fiscal quarter ended December 31, EA expected net revenue to be approximately $1.825 billion to $2.025 billion. Change in deferred net revenue (online-enabled games) was expected to be approximately $425 million. Net income was expected to be approximately $203 million to $275 million. And diluted earnings per share were expected to be approximately 75 cents to $1.01. Net bookings were expected to be approximately $2.250 billion to $2.450 billion.
“EA Sports FC outperformed expectations again this quarter, delivering 7% year-over-year net bookings growth, as momentum continued through the FC brand transition,” said Stuart Canfield, CFO of EA, in a statement. “We will continue to build upon the strength within our portfolio, while prioritizing investments in our largest opportunities for multi-year growth.”
EA said its net revenues were $1.945 billion, with net cash from operating activities of $1.264 billion, up 13% from a year ago. For the trailing 12 months, net cash from operating activities was $2.352 billion.
For the fourth fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2024, EA said net revenue is expected to be $1.625 billion to $1.925 billion. No change in deferred net revenue (online-enabled games) is expected. Net income is expected to be $54 million to $183 million. And diluted earnings per share are expected to be 20 cents to 68 cents. Net bookings are expected to be $1.625 billion to $1.925 billion.
For the full fiscal year ending March 31, 2024, EA’s net revenue is expected to be $7.408 billion to $7.708 billion. Net income is expected to be $1.145 billion to $1.274 billion. Diluted earnings per share is expected to be approximately $4.21 a share to $4.68. Operating cash flow is expected to be approximately $1.950 billion to $2.100 billion.
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