EA bookings reached $1.751 billion for the quarter ended March 31

Electronic Arts today reported earnings for the fourth fiscal quarter ended March 31, as the games publisher saw good engagement on live services with its existing games and good user growth.

EA was expected to post non-GAAP earnings per share of $1.43 on revenue of $1.77 billion. For the fiscal first quarter ended June 30, analysts expect EA to report earnings of 87 cents per share on revenue of $1.45 billion.

Net bookings for the fourth fiscal quarter ended March 31 were $1.751 billion compared to $1.490 billion a year earlier.

The Redwood City, Calif.-based video game giant reported fourth fiscal quarter GAAP net income of $225 million, or 80 cents a share, on revenue of $1.825 billion, compared to net income of $76 million or 26 cents a share on sales of $1.346 billion a year ago.

In after-hours trading, the stock is down 1% to $110.62 a share.

EA’s stock price determines its value in the market, and one must be careful not to give that away, given that Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion after Activision Blizzard’s stock price fell last fall. EA doesn’t want to go under the hammer for a bargain because it missed a quarter or had a bad game. Most public gaming company stocks have been slammed down over the past few months.

Postings reflect the actual cash accruing to the company, while earnings do not include figures that have yet to be realized, such as: B. Virtual Goods that have been purchased but not yet used in games.

For the full fiscal year ended March 31, EA reported net bookings of $7.515 billion, up 21% year over year. Live services and other net bookings grew 17% year over year and accounted for 71% of total net bookings for the year.

“FY22 was a record year, with hundreds of millions of gamers around the world joining our games to play, watch and create together,” said Andrew Wilson, CEO of Electronic Arts, in a statement. “With amazing games built around powerful intellectual properties, developed by incredibly talented teams, and outstanding commitment to our live services, FY23 will be a year of innovation and growth for Electronic Arts.”

Chris Suh, EA’s Chief Financial Officer, said in a statement, “We ended the year with another strong quarter of revenue and earnings growth, driven by our Live Services business, which accounted for 85% of our net bookings in FYQ4,” said CFO Chris Suh. “We have a strong foundation of engaged stakeholders, rich intellectual property and a robust business model that we will continue to invest in to deliver growth in FY23 and beyond.”

For the quarter ended March 31, unique active accounts totaled 580 million, up 16% year over year. In the prior quarter, EA ended the third fiscal quarter ended December 31 with 540 million unique active accounts. EA had more than 180 million monthly active accounts across all platforms.

During the financial year, FIFA had more than 150 million accounts. FIFA Mobile had its busiest quarter with new unique player growth of 80% over the year. Apex Legend Season 12 set new records for engagement, and It Takes Two won over 90 years throughout the year.

Net cash from operations was $444 million for the quarter and $1.899 billion for the year.

A look ahead

EA has been on an acquisition spree over the past year, acquiring Codemasters, Glu, Metalhead, and Playdemic.

For the upcoming first fiscal quarter ended June 30, EA expects net sales of $1.675 billion and net income of $216 million to $240 million, or 76 to 85 cents per share. Net bookings are expected to be $1.2 billion to $1.25 billion.

For the full fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, EA expects net sales of $7.6 billion to $7.8 billion and net income of $793 million to $815 million.