Take-Two Posts Q3 Profit On Strong Sales

September 4, 2008 8:42 p.m. EST

San Francisco, CA (AHN) - Take-Two Interactive reported Thursday they swing to a profit in the third quarter due to strong sales, especially for their "Grand Theft Auto 4" and Sid Meier's "Civilization Revolution" titles.

The videogame developer posted a third quarter profit of $51.8 million or 67 cents a share, compared with a loss of $58.5 million or 81 cents a share in the same period a year earlier.

Excluding one-time expenses, many of which are related to the Electronic Arts buyout offer, Take-Two earned $71.5 million or 93 cents a share. The result topped analyst estimates of 54 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters.

Revenue surged, led by the release or "Grand Theft Auto 4", to $433.8 million from $206.4 million last year. The revenue number also topped analyst estimates of $381.3 million.

Take-Two reduced its previous fourth quarter guidance. The company now expects to earn between 1 cent and 5 cents a share on sales ranging from $285 million to $335 million.

Shares of Take-Two are up 12 cents to $23.35 in Thursday afterhours trading.