Take-Two Stock Jumps as Record GTA VI Preorders Outweigh Bookings Miss

Take-Two Interactive Software closed at $231.31 on Nov. 11, extending an 8.3% rally from Nov. 10. The advance arrived after the company released its fiscal second-quarter results on Nov. 9, with market optimism around the upcoming Nov. 19 launch of Grand Theft Auto VI overshadowing lower-than-anticipated quarterly net bookings.

For the fiscal second quarter, net bookings fell 18% year over year to $1.60 billion, falling short of management's projected $1.62 billion to $1.67 billion. Recurrent consumer spending dropped 9%, missing the company's forecast of a 5% decline amid softer performance in mobile and NBA 2K27, even though the basketball title surpassed 4 million units sold. Revenue totaled $1.5 billion, while the GAAP net loss per share narrowed to $0.29 from $0.73 a year earlier, beating guidance.

Despite the bookings shortfall, investor attention centered on presales for Grand Theft Auto VI. Chief Executive Strauss Zelnick highlighted that preorders have reached unprecedented levels, tracking far beyond internal expectations. Third-party tracker Sensor Tower projected that presales have reached roughly 9.69 million units, or about $942 million to $1 billion. That figure already eclipses the roughly $800 million generated by Grand Theft Auto V during its first 24 hours in 2013.

Management chose to maintain its fiscal 2027 net bookings forecast of $8.0 billion to $8.2 billion, noting it seeks to avoid claiming victory ahead of the release. For the fiscal third quarter, which includes the game's launch on PlayStation and Xbox, Take-Two projects net bookings of $3.35 billion to $3.50 billion. The company also guides full-year revenue between $7.98 billion and $8.18 billion.

Wall Street opinions reflect the heightened stakes. Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating with a $300 price target, and Freedom Capital Markets analyst Nick McKay established a $293 target. Meanwhile, HSBC lowered its target to $282 from $285. Analysts tracked by FactSet forecast bookings to hit $8.61 billion in fiscal 2027, though some market observers note the stock's valuation already prices in substantial launch success.