Ubisoft Entertainment shares jump on cash forecast. business News
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Ubisoft Entertainment shares rose after the “Assassin’s Creed” maker said it will have enough cash to meet upcoming debt maturities, reassuring investors as it overhauls its operations and gaming portfolio.
The company expects cash between $1.48 billion and $1.60 billion at the end of the March fiscal year.
Shares in Paris rose more than 10% on Friday, recouping some of this year’s losses, but the stock is still down about 30% since January.
The French videogame maker said Thursday it expects to have between 1.25 billion and 1.35 billion euros ($1.48 billion-$1.60 billion) in cash at the end of March, when Ubisoft ends its fiscal year.
The company said the money will be available to fully meet debt maturities, assuring investors that it has adequate liquidity. It also said it was considering options to extend its debt maturity period.
Chief Executive Yves Guillemot said, “Our financial position and available cash provide the necessary flexibility to address near-term maturities, while we continue to work on enhancing our debt profile.”
The cash forecast comes just weeks after the group outlined structural changes for fiscal 2026, closing and postponing several games, closing studios and cutting financial targets, part of efforts to turn around its business after game production delays, glitches and cancellations.
Ubisoft was at a high when lockdowns and other pandemic-era restrictions increased player engagement as people were forced to spend more time at home. However, the lifting of those restrictions and an increasingly competitive market forced it to issue several profit warnings and focus resources on games that were more likely to prove big hits among players. Its stock is down nearly 90% since the end of 2021.
Ubisoft said net bookings for the quarter ending Dec. 31 stood at 338 million euros, up 12% year on year and broadly in line with preliminary figures announced last month.
The company said it expects net bookings of about 1.5 billion euros and non-IFRS operating losses of about 1 billion euros for the year to the end of March.
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