'Call Of Duty', 'Candy Crush' Help Activision Blizzard Hit Record Numbers In Q1

Activision Blizzard Inc (NASDAQ: ATVI) reported revenue of $2.28 billion in the first quarter, coming in higher than last year’s $1.79 billion and also beating the company’s guidance of $2.02 billion. The company reported non-GAAP eps of 98 cents in the quarter.

Digital revenue was $2.01 billion. Net bookings hit $2.07 billion in the first quarter, including $1.34 billion of in-game net bookings.

The company’s Activision segment saw revenue up 72% year-over-year led by the strength of the "Call of Duty" franchise. Activision had monthly active users of 150 million in the first quarter, with "Call of Duty" MAUs up 40% year-over-year. In-game bookings for "Call of Duty" were up 60% year-over-year.

The Blizzard unit for the company saw revenue grow 7% year-over-year. The segment had 27 million monthly active users in the first quarter.

Activision’s King mobile segment saw record revenue with a year-over-year increase of 22%. The segment had 258 million monthly active users. "Candy Crush" led the way with strong revenue and increased engagement from more frequent seasonal events. Advertising net bookings were up 70% year-over-year for the King segment.

Related Link: Activision Blizzard Rallies On Strong Q4 Report, 2021 Guidance

What’s Next: Growth of "Call of Duty Mobile" could continue with strong momentum reported in March. The company said April is the top-grossing month to date at this point of its launch. "Call of Duty Mobile" has performed well in China, which could continue to increase in-game spending going forward.

The company said the "Diablo Immortal" mobile game is on track to be released in the current fiscal year.

The King segment could be in for a strong second quarter with "Crash Bandicoot: On The Run" being released on March 25 and seeing over 30 million downloads to date.

Activision Blizzard sees full-year revenue hitting $8.37 billion and non-GAAP EPS hitting $3.42 for the full fiscal year. The company guided for second-quarter revenue of $2.14 billion.

Price Action: Shares of Activision Blizzard are up 5% to $93.15 in after-hours trading.

"Call of Duty: Black Ops 4" screenshot courtesy of Activision Blizzard.