Earnings: Zynga reports net loss for Q2; revenues miss view

Zynga (NASDAQ: ZNGA), the maker of popular online game FarmVille, reported a wider net loss for the second quarter, despite a sharp increase in revenues. The top-line, however, missed the estimates. The company revised up its full-year guidance, driving the stock higher Wednesday evening.

Revenues moved up 41% annually to $306 million, aided by a 61% growth in bookings to $376 million. The top-line, however, missed the Street view. The growth was driven mainly by live services, including Empires & Puzzles and Merge Dragons!. Words With Friends achieved its best Q2 mobile revenue and bookings. Average mobile daily active users rose 1%, while average mobile monthly active users dropped by 10%.

The company reported a net loss of $58.8 million or $0.06 per share for the June quarter, compared to a loss of $0.9 million in the same period of last year. Analysts were looking for a profit.

The management has raised its full-year guidance and currently expects revenues of $1.24 billion for fiscal 2019, up 3% year-over-year. The revised forecast for full-year bookings is $1.5 billion, up 55% year-over-year and an increase of $50 million versus the prior guidance.

For the third quarter, the company expects revenues of $325 million. Net income and bookings are seen increasing to 250 million and $380 million respectively during the period. Deferred revenue is forecast to grow by $55 million.

The topline performance will continue to be driven by the live services in the September quarter, with moderate sequential growth collectively across the five ‘forever franchises.’ Meanwhile, the incremental contribution from Game of Thrones Slots Casino will be more than offset by declines in web and older mobile games.

Related: Zynga Q1 2019 Earnings Conference Call Transcript

A few months ago, Zynga launched Game of Thrones Slots Casino on App Store and Google Play, globally. More recently, it rolled out the Tiny Royale game exclusively on real-time multiplayer gaming platform Snap Games (SNAP).

After gaining steadily since the beginning of the year, Zynga’s shares reached a seven-year high this week. The stock climbed about 60 in the past twelve months. It closed Wednesday’s regular session slightly lower.

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