Infogrames Posts Depressed Q1 Results

Joining the host of companies releasing information on their previous financial quarter is Infogrames, French parent of the American-headquartered Atari Inc. Infogrames itself generated 55.5 million Euros ($67.2 million USD) in revenue during the quarter, a significant drop from its 163.7 million Euro ($198.4 million USD) 2004 revenue of the same period, when Driv3r was a better-selling title for the company. News of the drop caused Infogrames stock to dip down to 1.64 Euros ($1.98 USD) a share. Analysts were unimpressed with the performance; Jean-Michel Salvador of Fideuram Wargny, speaking to Reuters, called the results "very weak," a judgement echoed by Brice Mari of Exane BNP Paribas who said that the lower results were nevertheless "largely expected." Perhaps expecting the results itself, Infogrames did not alter its expectations for the fiscal year. One bright spot was Infogrames' sale of its Hasbro digital licenses back to the original company, which resulted in an additional 52.7-million Euro ($63.8 million USD) earning. The company is also banking on a second-half lineup of games debuting in the holiday season, such as The Matrix: Path of Neo, Mark Ecko's Getting Up, and Dragon Ball Z Budokai: Tenkaichi to drive profits in the remainder of the year. "Results for the first quarter reflect the Group's new strategy of prioritizing the release of major titles at the end of the year," said Infogrames Entertainment Chairman Bruno Bonnell, "in order to maximize their profitability and to take advantage of normal seasonal fluctuations in sales. They are consistent with that strategy and with the financial results of Infogrames for the year ended March 31, 2005, during which the focus was placed on profitability and returns from operations. In addition, the significant positive impact of sales of licenses, including to Hasbro, will further improve profitability for the current year."