EA Sees "Momentum" for Full Year Despite Revenue Downturn in Latest Quarter

Electronic Arts on Thursday reported earnings for the quarter ended June 30--the company's fiscal Q1-- revealing that both revenue and profit dropped compared to last year.

For the quarter, net revenue was $693 million, down from $775 million during the same period last year. However, EA actually performed ahead of expectations, as its projection for the quarter was $640 million. Profit, on the other hand, slid from $61 million last year to $49 million during the latest quarter.

EA CEO Andrew Wilson said these results represent a "great start" for EA as it heads into the new fiscal year. "We have players engaging for longer periods in our live services, ongoing strength across our digital business, and growing anticipation for our upcoming titles," he said in a statement.

The publisher did not share any hard sales numbers today, but said Battlefield 4 and Battlefield Hardline players combined to log 170 million online gameplay hours in the quarter. Another statistic EA broke out was monthly active users for its mobile games reaching more than 150 million.

The publisher also said more than 16 million FIFA 15 matches were played per day in the period. Check out the infographic here for more stats from EA's Q1.

Another bright spot for EA in the quarter was its digital business. For the period, digital revenue was $532 million, up from $482 million last year. EA's packaged business, meanwhile, stood at $161 million, down from $293 million during the same period last year.

EA also announced today that it is raising its full-year sales expectations "to reflect the momentum across our portfolio." Specifically, EA is expecting net revenue to be $4.450 billion for the year, up from its previous projection of $4.250 billion. Diluted earnings per share, meanwhile, are expected to reach $2.85, an increase of 10 cents from EA's previous $2.75 estimate.

One of EA's biggest upcoming releases for this fall is Star Wars Battlefront, which launches in November for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.

The publisher will hold an earnings call starting at 2 PM PDT / 5 PM EDT today to discuss these results and possibly more. Check back later for more.