(Reuters) -Take -Two Interactive’s Wall Street expectations for Thursday’s forecast for fiscal 2026 bookings were lower than revised expectations, suggesting that the release lineup is strong this year and may not be hit by the delays in its highly anticipated “Grand Theft Auto VI”.
According to analysts’ average estimates, the company expects to be between $5.9 billion and $6.46 billion after the average estimate of the visible Alpha compilation is revised after “GTA VI”.
The New York-based company’s stock fell nearly 2% in expansion trading.
The next part of the best-selling “Grand Theft Auto” series is expected to sell millions and generate billions in the first few weeks. Take-Two’s decision to postpone the long-awaited game to fiscal 2027 may be valued in overall bookings this year, but may benefit in the next year.
“As we bring an exciting lineup to the market, including Grand Theft Auto VI for fiscal 2027, we hope to reach record-breaking net booking levels,” said Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick.
The delay in “GTA VI” has led to a wave of release dates for this launch window, leveraging from publishers who want to take advantage of sales charts that Take-Two may dominate.
Take-Two lined up other titles this year, such as “Borderlands 4” and “Mafia: Old Country”, but their potentially powerful releases are unlikely to be hit by the delays in “GTA VI”.
According to data compiled by LSEG, the company expects first-quarter bookings to be between $1.25 billion and $1.3 billion, compared with an estimated $1.28 billion.
(Reported by Zaheer Kachwala in Bangalore; Editor of Leroy Leo)
