Take-Two Reports Strong Fiscal First-quarter Earnings

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. late Wednesday reported it swung to a fiscal first-quarter profit of $60.28 milion, or 56 cents a share, from a loss of $38.6 million, or 46 cents a share, a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast earnings of 20 cents a share. Revenue grew 34% to $418.2 million, beating the $281 million projected by analysts. The maker of "Grand Theft Auto" franchise said starting in the first quarter, it has replaced bookings with net sales as an operational metric. In contrast to bookings, net sales include "licensing fees, merchandise, in-game advertising, strategy guides and publisher incentives." The company expects second-quarter revenue in a range of $400 million to $450 million and earnings per share of 15 cents to 25 cents. Shares of Take-Two were halted in late trade after closing down 0.7%.