Bank Of America Comments On November NPD Data, Take-Two Interactive A Standout

Justin Post of Bank of America commented in a note on Friday on November's NPD data showing U.S. retail software sales improved to negative two percent in November.

According to Post, November's improvement was attributed to a slate of new releases this year including "Call of Duty," "Assassin's Creed," "Pokemon," "Far Cry," "Dragon Age" and "Halo" along with various sports titles. The analyst adds that software sales improvements are “encouraging” for the industry.

Post also notes that total hardware sales were down year-over-year, despite next-generation sales being up.

Company Specific Commentary:

Post notes that Activision Blizzard, Inc.'s (NASDAQ: ATVI) 23 percent decline in sales was due to lower sales of "Call of Duty." The analyst does add that WoW Digital PC sales which are not including in NPD data implies the company's revenue is “tracking closer to in-line.

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) saw its NPD data showing retail sales tracking down 36 percent in the quarter, an improvement from the 40 percent the analyst estimated. The company is setting up for a “solid” third quarter, according to Post due to higher revenue from "Dragon Age" and EA Sports digital.

Finally, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) has the biggest upside potential in the quarter, according to Post. The analyst explains that Take-Two Interactive saw U.S. retail sales rising 39 percent from a year ago due to strong sales of GTA 5 on next-gen consoles and NBA 2K remaining on track for year-over-year growth.