- Count Macquarie's Ben Schachter among the analysts who are shaking off the early reviews for Star Wars: Battlefront and expecting good things from Electronic Arts (EA -0.8%).
- Schachter has maintained his Outperform rating on the stock, and has a price target of $83; shares closed yesterday at $68.10 and are currently trading at $67.57, implying 23% upside from here.
- Last month, EA had boosted expectations for sales of the game to 13M units by the end of March, from a previous forecast of 9-10M, and Schachter thinks even the 13M could be conservative: The game is more of a mass-market play than one for hardcore first-person shooter fans, he suggests.
- As for the early reviews -- many of which focus on the dearth of story content -- downloadable content offered during the coming year could change that equation, and Schachter thinks EA hasn't shown all its cards there: “Though still unconfirmed, we expect more monetizable content than just what is announced for the Star Wars Season Pass. We expect the additional content will help drive revenue through 2016 and beyond."
- Previously: EA launches 'Star Wars: Battlefront' to mixed reviews (Nov. 17 2015)
- Previously: EA +1% as Oppenheimer launches at Outperform on strong slate, margins (Nov. 12 2015)
- Previously: Electronic Arts sinks 5% after beat-and-raise, bullish targets (Oct. 30 2015)
- Related: Electronics Arts Bombs On Battlefront Reviews, But Sales Will Be Strong Anyway (Nov. 18 2015)