Shares of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: EA) were down 1% on Friday. The stock has gained 19% over the past three months. The company ended fiscal year 2025 on a strong note with solid fourth quarter results, and it anticipates continued growth in the upcoming fiscal year as well. Here are a couple of reasons to be optimistic about this gaming giant:
Strong Q4 performance
Electronic Arts delivered strong results for the fourth quarter of 2025 with growth in both the top and bottom line numbers. Net revenue increased 7% year-over-year to $1.90 billion. Earnings per share rose 46% to $0.98. Net bookings grew 8% YoY to $1.80 billion, with a 48% increase in full game net bookings and a 1% rise in live services and other net bookings.
Sports games momentum
EA is benefiting from strong momentum in its sports games. In Q4, it witnessed a pickup in EA SPORTS FC after a temporary slowdown in Q3. The title benefited from a gameplay update followed by events and content releases throughout the quarter, which helped drive better-than-expected net bookings and a double-digit rise in player engagement.
FC Mobile saw double-digit growth in net bookings during the fourth quarter. FC Mobile is an important contributor to global reach and engagement as the company expands the Global Football franchise.
American Football benefited from strong late cycle engagement trends and gains from College Football Ultimate Team in the fourth quarter. As mentioned on the earnings call, players across Madden NFL and College Football across console and PC grew double-digits and hours played were up 68%, leading to net bookings of over $1 billion in FY2025, up over 70% YoY.
EA sees vast opportunity for its Global Football and American Football franchises going forward as they continue to rise in popularity. The company sees a major acquisition opportunity in the 2026 World Cup event along with more milestones in the coming years. This gives it optimism on the success of its sports franchises in the long term.
Outlook
For the first quarter of 2026, Electronic Arts expects net bookings of approx. $1.17-1.27 billion, with low-single-digit growth in live services, excluding Apex Legends. Net revenue is expected to be $1.55-1.65 billion while EPS is expected to be $0.49-0.66.
For fiscal year 2026, net bookings are expected to be $7.60-8.00 billion, with YoY growth driven by the EA SPORTS portfolio, The Sims, and the launches of Battlefield and skate. Net revenue is expected to be $7.10-7.50 billion and EPS is expected to be $3.09-3.79.