Game Publisher Take-Two Interactive's Profit Beats Estimates

Video game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc (NASDAQ:TTWO), reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit, helped by strong sales of its "Grand Theft Auto V" and "NBA 2K15" titles.

Shares of the company, which also owns the "Civilization" game franchise, were up 6.2 percent in extended trading.

Take-Two Interactive Software also increased its stock buyback plan to 10 million shares.

Sales of the physical retail version of "Grand Theft Auto V" ranked among NPD Group's top five games in February and March, while sales of "NBA 2K15" came in within the research firm's top-10 list for the two months for which data was available.

Take-Two Interactive estimated adjusted revenue of $325 million-$350 million and an adjusted profit of 25-35 cents per share for the first quarter.

"The majority of our revenue in the first quarter is expected to come from Grand Theft Auto V, Grand Theft Auto V for PC and Grand Theft Auto Online," Chief Executive Strauss Zelnick said in an interview.

Adjusted net income increased to $54.3 million, or 49 cents per share, in the fourth quarter ended March 31, from $21.5 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, revenue rose to $427.7 million from $233.2 million.

Analysts on average had expected a profit of 27 cents per share and revenue of $458.9 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

(By Anya George Tharakan and Sai Sachin R; Editing by Joyjeet Das)