Shares in Candy Crush’s new owner Activision Blizzard plunge by 16 per cent as revenue miss overshadows Call of Duty success
Shares in US video games maker Activision Blizzard tumbled by more than 16 per cent in after hours trading, after the company missed revenue and profit expectations in the final quarter of 2015.
The firm, which bought Candy Crush creator King Digital in November last year, posted revenue of $2.12bn (£1.46bn) for the fourth quarter of last year, down from $2.21bn in the same period of 2014 – and missing its own forecast of $2.15bn. Revenue for the year was down from $4.81bn to $4.62bn.
The group said its Call of Duty franchise saw double-digit revenue growth for the full year and the quarter.
Activision Blizzard boss Bobby Kotick said that with the acquisition of King Digital, set to close later this month, the company has created the largest game network in the world, with over 500m users playing its games every month.
"This gives us the opportunity to engage our global audiences and create revenue streams from content and services," he said.
Kostick said that the group expects to generate approximately $6.25bn in revenues and over $2bn of operating income in 2016, adding: "We will have over 9,000 of the most talented people making, marketing and selling great games around the world."