Activision Blizzards’ (ATVI) latest release Destiny garnered more than $325 million in the first five days worldwide, per Chart-track and the company’s internal estimates. However, share price fell 3.47% (77 cents) to $21.44, which primarily reflects profit-booking in our view.
Per Bungie, Destiny’s famed developers; players logged more than 100 million hours of online play by the end of the first week and participated in 137 million activities. Destiny rated Teen by ESRB is currently available on Sony’s PlayStation 4 & 3 as well as on Microsoft’s (MSFT) Xbox One and 360 gaming systems.
Per reports, Activision invested $500 million in developing and marketing Destiny, a sum which the game managed to recover on the very first day. The company believes that Destiny is set to become the new billion dollar franchise similar to Call of Duty, Skylanders and World of Warcraft.
Among the prominent U.S. game developers and publishers, Activision has the best product pipeline for the upcoming holiday season. The company is set to launch World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor, the newest expansion in the epic franchise, which, reportedly, has already been pre-purchased by over 1.5 million subscribers.
In October, the company intends to launch SkyLanders: Trap Team. The November release of its blockbuster franchise Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare presents a significant growth opportunity in the upcoming holiday season.
Both Electronic Arts (EA) and Take-Two Interactive (TTWO) have postponed their much-anticipated games Battlefield and Evolve to 2015, which will benefit Activision.
However, Activision’s limited presence in the mobile gaming segment, higher adoption of free-to-play games and significant competition from the likes of EA and Take-Two Interactive are the major headwinds in the near term.
Currently, Activision has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
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