(Reuters) – Take-Two Interactive Software Inc on Monday projected fourth-quarter adjusted sales below market estimates, a sign that the video-gaming boom sparked by the pandemic was fading.
The videogame publisher said it expected adjusted revenue between $808 million and $858 million, while analysts had estimated $924.24 million, according to Refinitiv IBES data.
Video games sales surged during the early months of the pandemic on demand from people who had fewer outdoor entertainment options, but the easing of restrictions has taken the steam out of the boom.
Rival Activision Blizzard Inc also missed market estimates for sales last week, while Electronic Arts Inc lowered its annual sales projection as fewer gamers picked up its new titles.
Take-Two posted adjusted sales of $866.1 million for the third quarter ended Dec. 31, missing expectations of $874.56 million.
Its net income fell to $144.5 million, or $1.24 per share, from $182.2 million, or $1.57 per share, a year earlier.
(Reporting by Tiyashi Datta and Nivedita Balu in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni)
