Take-Two posts higher 3Q net income, revenue

NEW YORK (AP) -- Video game company Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. said Tuesday that its fiscal third-quarter net income rose sharply, helped by higher revenue from games like "NBA 2K13" and "Borderlands 2."

The company earned $71.4 million, or 66 cents per share, in the three months that ended on Dec. 31. That's up from earnings of $14.1 million, or 16 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.

Revenue rose to $415.8 million from $236.3 million.

On an adjusted basis, the company earned 67 cents per share on revenue of $405 million. They exclude one-time items and account for deferred costs and revenue for games with online components.

Analysts, on average, expected earnings of 55 cents per share on revenue of $363.9 million, according to FactSet.

For the current quarter, Take-Two expects adjusted earnings of 10 to 25 cents per share on revenue of $235 million to $285 million

Analysts forecast earnings of 36 cents per share on revenue of $301.6 million.

Chairman and CEO Strauss Zelnick said Take-Two's results surpassed expectations and the company is "pleased that our catalog is a big driver of our success." Older titles, including "Grand Theft Auto IV" and "Red Dead Redemption, accounted for 22 percent of Take-Two's adjusted revenue during the quarter. Revenue from content delivered digitally as downloads accounted for 23 percent of adjusted revenue.

Also, the company's board authorized a buyback of up to 7.5 million shares.

Shares rose 15 cents to close at $12.66.