GameStop same-store sales rise 4.4 percent in December
(Reuters) - GameStop Corp , the world's largest retailer of video game products, said December same-store store sales rose 4.4 percent, driven by higher demand for games such as Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Grand Theft Auto V and Far Cry 4.
Shares of the company, which narrowed its fourth-quarter and full-year same-store sales forecast, rose as much as 10 percent to $36 in extended trading.
"During the holiday period, consumer demand for video games was strong, resulting in new software sales growth. We expect that trend to continue into the first quarter," Chief Executive Officer Paul Raines said in a statement.
GameStop said it now estimated same-store sales to fall 1-2.5 percent in the fourth quarter ending January. It earlier forecast sales to either rise up to 2 percent or fall 5 percent.
The company narrowed its estimate for full-year comparable sales growth to 3-4 percent from 2-5 percent.
New software sales grew 5.8 percent during the nine-week holiday period ended Jan. 3, driven by sales for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One games, which nearly doubled.
Sales in the mobile & consumer electronics category rose 28 percent due to a 75.8 percent jump in technology brands revenues.
The Grapevine, Texas-based company's shares closed at $32.77 on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. The stock had fallen 31 percent in 2014.
(Reporting By Kshitiz Goliya; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
