THQ Quarterly Results Decline, Company Pins Hope On Nemo

For the quarter, THQ posted a net loss of $7.7 million (20 cents per share), compared with a profit of $2.8 million (7 cents per share) last year. Net sales were down as well, reaching just $66.8 million -- a drop of 16% from last year. The good news was that these revenues surpassed the expectations of Wall Street analysts, most of whom had been prepared for a $50 million quarter. THQ's CFO, Fred Gysi, told analysts that the company's results reflected the fact that the company didn't have any hit games at the moment, and that sales of older titles drove the company's results. He also said that lower gross margins in Europe and higher selling and marketing expenses for upcoming games were to blame. Looking forward, THQ said reaffirmed guidance of $75-$85 million in revenue for the current quarter, but expects a larger loss of 10-12 cents per share, due to 2-cent charge attributed to E3 expenses. The company will be heavily promoting its upcoming game based on the upcoming Pixar/Disney film "Finding Nemo" -- company executives said they believe the game will sell over 500,000 units across various platforms.