While investors and gamers try to pick up their jaws after publisher Take-Two Interactive reported it sold-in 29 million copies of Grand Theft Auto V and smashed its earnings expectations, Madden publisher Electronic Arts reports it didn’t have such a bad quarter itself.
EA revealed its financial results for its fiscal Q2 today, and the company reported nongenerally accepted accounting practices (non-GAAP) revenues of $1.04 billion for the quarter ending Sept. 30. That’s down slightly from the same period in the company’s fiscal 2012, when the company generated $1.08 billion in non-GAAP revenue.
The company also reported earnings per share (EPS) of 33 cents. That beats its previous profit guidance of 12 cents per share.
“We exceeded our revenue and EPS guidance in the second quarter through a combination of delivering on revenue and managing our costs,” EA chief financial officer Blake Jorgensen said. “We are reaffirming our annual non-GAAP net revenue guidance of $4 billion and raising our non-GAAP EPS guidance from $1.20 to $1.25 per share.”
During the quarter, EA launched Madden NFL 25 and NCAA Football 14. Both games helped propel the company’s revenues.
“EA’s strong second quarter was driven by great title launches, continued digital growth, and financial discipline,” EA chief executive officer Andrew Wilson said in a statement. “While we have made good progress in the first half of the year, we remain focused on executing our FY14 plan and delivering a full slate of amazing games and services to players on current and next-generation consoles, mobile, and PC.”
For the rest of its fiscal year, EA is relying on a pair of major shooters to help it keep up with earnings. It’s launching modern-military shooter Battlefield 4 today for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. It will also arrive alongside the next-gen consoles.
On March 11, the company will debut Titanfall, the first shooter from new developer Respawn Entertainment.
Later in Q2, EA’s board appointed former EA Sports boss Andrew Wilson to the position of chief executive officer. This followed a long candidate-appraisal process after former EA CEO John Riccitiello stepped down in March.
In that CEO-less interim, EA board member (and former EA CEO) Larry Probst handled managerial duties as executive chairman. He cut jobs and closed studios in an effort to slim down the company for its future CEO. He also oversaw the acquisition of the Star Wars license.
Now, Wilson is working on his first full quarter as CEO. It’s the holiday season, and it will see the launch of two new major consoles and the publisher’s premiere shooter Battlefield 4.