Take-Two Interactive Software reported bookings of $1.6 billion for the second fiscal quarter ended September 30, down 18% from a year ago and below analyst expectations.
New York-based Take-Two said that the NBA 2K27 launched during the quarter and hit its second-highest net bookings performance in history, but it was below Take-Two’s forecast for the period.
Of course, it’s quite possible this under-performance may not spook investors at all, as the launch of Grand Theft Auto VI is just 10 days away on November 19. That launch is expected to be the biggest game launch of all time.
The company said preorders for Grand Theft Auto VI are tracking “far in excess of our initial expectations and we know that the numbers will speak for themselves soon enough.”
The company updated its fiscal year 2027 outlook and reiterated expectations for net bookings of $8.0 to $8.2 billion for the year ending March 31, 2027. In after-hours trading, Take-Two’s stock is up 5%.
Strauss Zelnick, chairman and CEO of Take-Two, said in a statement, “The launch of Grand Theft Auto VI is ten days away and, with pre-orders continuing to reach unprecedented levels, we expect to deliver an historic year for our company.”
Zelnick added, “We are reiterating our outlook for Fiscal 2027 Net Bookings of $8 to $8.2 billion, and are confident in our ability to build on this incredible year as we release new hits, explore emerging business opportunities, expand our geographic footprint, and pursue accretive M&A – all of which will set us on a path to unlock greater earnings power and long-term shareholder value.”
Net bookings were 1.60 billion for the fiscal second quarter, down 18% from $1.96 billion a year ago. Net bookings from recurrent consumer spending decreased 9% and accounted for 81% of total Net Bookings.
The largest contributors to net bookings for the quarter were NBA 2K, the Grand Theft Auto series, Toon Blast, Match Factory, Empires & Puzzles, the Borderlands franchise, Words With Friends, the Red Dead Redemption series, Color Block Jam, WWE 2K, and Zynga Poker.
On a GAAP basis, net revenue was $1.50 billion, compared to $1.77 billion in last year’s fiscal second quarter. Recurrent consumer spending decreased 5% and accounted for 81% of total GAAP net revenue. The same games were the largest contributors to GAAP net revenue.
The GAAP net loss was $54.0 million, or 29 cents per share, as compared to $133.9 million, or 73 cents per share, for the comparable period last year.
Net Bookings is Take-Two’s operational metric and defined as the net amount of products and services sold digitally or sold-in physically during the period, and includes licensing fees, merchandise, in-game advertising, strategy guides and publisher incentives.
Take-Two said as of September 30, 2026, the company’s employee count was 12,895, including 9,972 in-house development studio staff. The previous count was 13,035.
Take-Two reported earnings today and its stock price is up 5% in after-hours trading to $213.70 a share. Overall, Take-Two is valued at $38.8 billion in the market.
Outlook for Fiscal Year 2027
Take-Two is updating its outlook for the fiscal year and providing its initial outlook for its fiscal third quarter ending December 31, 2026 as follows.
Net bookings for the year are expected to be the same as previous projections, coming in at $8 billion to $8.2 billion for the year ending March 31, 2027. RCS, capital spending are expected to be flat.
But Take-Two believes GAAP net revenue will be somewhat higher at $7.98 billion to $8.18 billion, compared to previous guidance of $7.90 billion to $8.10 billion. GAAP diluted net income per share is expected to be 57 cents to 75 cents, compared with previous guidance of 55 cents to 75 cents.
“We believe that Fiscal 2027 will be an historic year for Take-Two – driven by our unwavering commitment to delivering the highest quality entertainment experiences,” Take-Two said.
Outlook for Q3 FY 27
Net bookings for the fiscal third quarter 2027 — the December quarter that will capture the first sales of GTA VI — are expected to be $3.27 billion to $3.42 billion, or roughly double the results of the September quarter and up from bookings of $1.76 billion in the prior year.
RCS net bookings are expected to be up 12% (thanks to players likely playing more past GTA games), while GAAP revenue is expected to be $3.27 billion to $3.42 billion. GAAP net income is expected to be $250 million to $276 million, while GAAP GPS is expected to be $1.30 to $1.44 a share.
The largest contributors to Net Bookings are expected to be the Grand Theft Auto series, NBA 2K, Toon Blast, Match Factory, Empires & Puzzles, Words With Friends, the Red Dead Redemption series, Color Block Jam, Zynga Poker, and Toy Blast. Operating expenses are expected to be up 21% from a year ago, mainly due to marketing costs for Grand Theft Auto VI.
Take-Two projects the net bookings breakdown from our labels to be roughly 37% Rockstar Games, 34% Zynga, and 29% 2K.
Future game slate
The future game slate is shown in the chart. Most of the new games don’t have a launch date except GTA VI. The interesting games on the list are Zynga’s Top Goal and CSR3 for iOS and Android, as well as 2K’s Project Ethos, the next BioShock, and Ken Levine’s Ghost Story Games title Judas.
Segment results
Take-Two said the mobile business performed in line with plans, and the Grand Theft Auto series exceeded its forecast ahead of next week’s eagerly anticipated launch of Grand Theft Auto VI.
Recurrent Consumer Spending (RCS) was down 9% for the period, compared to the company’s guidance of a 5% decline, driven by NBA 2K, and accounted for 81% of Net Bookings. Compared to last year, NBA 2K and mobile each decreased, while the Grand Theft Auto series increased.
Rockstar Games — Grand Theft Auto V continued to expand its audience, and to date, the title has sold nearly 235 million units worldwide, up five million from the previous quarter.
The series grew a double-digit percentage for both RCS and average monthly members for GTA+, as players enjoyed the latest major update, The Kortz Center Heist, along with monthly events, new races and more.
In September, Rockstar Games unveiled nopixel V – the next evolution of Grand Theft Auto V’s roleplay community, with an entirely overhauled experience, new locations, and graphic enhancements focused on player immersion.
To celebrate the launch throughout the month, players were able to earn exclusive items within Grand Theft Auto Online by watching select roleplay streamers on Twitch. Rockstar Games will continue to support Grand Theft Auto Online with new content and ongoing events for its vast community.
Grand Theft Auto VI, coming to the world on November 19th, promises to be not only highly engaging, but in fact the biggest and most detailed, groundbreaking experience that Rockstar Games has ever created, the company said.
Take-Two added, “As you have undoubtedly seen, marketing for the title is well underway across the globe and has included an extended look at the game, which premiered on Netflix and became the platform’s most-viewed title for the week, drawing in 31 million consumers in just its first four days; an array of in-depth features and magazine covers; the reveal of the official soundtrack, which included three tracks that debuted in the Top-10 of their respective Billboard charts; the announcement of a special “Night In Vice City” in partnership with the NBA where the Miami Heat will play as Vice City vs. the Milwaukee Bucks; and a series of unique, in-person activations celebrating Vice City in Miami. We are immensely proud of the team at Rockstar Games for their unparalleled commitment to, and passion for, elevating our art form and all entertainment.”
2K — 2K and Visual Concepts delivered the most realistic and authentic NBA experience in interactive entertainment with NBA 2K27, which has sold over four million units so far. That was below expectations in part because the launch window was unusually busy, with numerous entertainment experiences competing for players’ attention.
“We expect an acceleration of Net Bookings and engagement during the second half of the year, as 2K and Visual Concepts plan to introduce a robust slate of in-game content including exciting, themed Seasons; all-new College Basketball experiences; and innovation within MyTeam,” the company said.
During the quarter, Borderlands 4 offered new downloadable content and introduced several promotions, which are driving improved engagement and player retention. The Borderlands franchise has now surpassed 100 million units sold, marking an incredible milestone for Gearbox and 2K. Take-Two expects more content for Borderlands 4.
During the period, 2K released add-on content and updates for Mafia: The Old Country, Sid Meier’s Civilization VII, PGA TOUR 2K, and WWE 2K, which enhanced gameplay and player engagement further for these titles.
Recently and looking ahead: On October 8, 2K and Gearbox released Risk of Rain 2: Hallowed Concepts, which introduced two new playable survivors, new regions to explore, and expanded gameplay mechanics to deepen the player experience.
2K continued to innovate its mobile offerings for the NBA 2K franchise. On October 20th, NBA 2K Mobile Season 9 launched with new modes that connect in-game action to real-world NBA schedules; a rewind feature that allows players to enjoy historic and iconic NBA moments; and real-time Player vs. Player matches. Additionally, NBA 2K27 Arcade Edition made its debut last week, offering WNBA Play Now; new expansion teams; deeper career journeys and progressions; a new 5v5 experience; and exclusive G.O.A.T. skills and rewards.
On October 28, 2K and Visual Concepts continued their post-launch content for WWE 2K26 with the release of Ringside Pass Season 6 and the standalone Street Fighter Elite Pack, which marks our first-ever collaboration with Capcom, and includes signature character moves and themed cosmetic creation parts. 2K also released Season 13 for WWE SuperCard last week, which has now been downloaded nearly 40M times since its initial launch.
Firaxis announced new content for Sid Meier’s Civilization VII for 2027, including Arc of Tomorrow, a comprehensive free update extending gameplay into the Atomic Age, and Earthrise – the title’s first major premium expansion featuring extended core mechanics and space-era progression. These additions will provide players with more ways to “take one more turn” in this iconic strategy series.
In the coming months, 2K will provide updates on PGA TOUR 2K27 and WWE 2K27, both of which are slated to launch later this fiscal year.
Mobile — Mobile performed in line with expectations, underscoring the importance and impact of diversified business.
As we had anticipated, net bookings for Color Block Jam decreased double-digits compared to its peak performance during last year’s second quarter.
Net bookings for Toon Blast grew 4% over last year’s record second quarter results, driven by a new in-game feature called Beam, which assists players while solving puzzles and has been increasing engagement and level progression.
Words With Friends benefitted from a multi-platform collaboration with the hit TV show, Wheel of Fortune, including a dedicated on-air theme week and in-game puzzles and online events for players, which drove Net Bookings growth of 6%.
Take-Two’s advertising business improved sequentially, as it successfully attracted new partners and increase ad yields.
2K’s mobile offerings also continued to perform well, with solid downloads and engagement across key titles. NBA 2K All-Star, the mobile title in partnership with Tencent in China, surpassed 11 million registered users since launching last year and is yielding strong profit margins.
Take-Two sees strength in its mobile direct-to-consumer channel, which remains a significant driver of revenue and margins as the company includes new titles, fosters direct relationships with players, and reduces payment friction to enhance the user experience and drive repeat purchases. These efforts position its direct-to-consumer platform as a durable and expanding engine for net bookings growth and long-term profitability.
Looking ahead, Zynga continues to develop and test many new titles, and several look promising based on their initial performance in soft launch, including Top Goal.
Interview with Strauss Zelnick today
Strauss Zelnick, CEO of Take-Two Interactive, said in an interview today with GamesBeat that awareness of Grand Theft Auto VI, which launches in 10 days, is “very strong indeed” and participation in the franchise is as well.
We talked about the company’s earnings report today and I also asked if marketing awareness for GTA VI was on track.
“Marketing is rolling out as planned. It’s a significant marketing campaign. There’s a lot of outdoor (advertising). There’s there’s a lot of audiovisual marketing on social, on television, and it’s a worldwide program. So I think Rockstar is doing a great job on the marketing, and I do feel like awareness and participation is very strong, indeed.”
I noted that the Miami marketing events, where the NBA basketball team Miami Heat will play against the Milwaukee Bucks on November 18 as Vice City, could generate the biggest impact on social media.
Zelnick said, “Minimally, the most fun. There’s nothing like taking over an entire city.”
Last week, a writer at the Wall Street Journal asked if Take-Two needed more hits beyond GTA VI, and Zelnick rattled off a number of big hits across mobile, PC and console games, from the NBA 2K series to Toon Blast. I asked him if it would help if Take-Two were better understood.
“We always want more hits, and we’re we’re really proud of our of our labels and everything they’ve achieved. We have 15 huge franchises that have been sold at least five million units in an individual release, along with a massive mobile business,” Zelnick said to me. “And I just couldn’t be more proud of my 13,000 colleagues around the world, especially on the eve of, hopefully, an historic release. So, we feel really good about how things are going and how things can go in the future.”
I also asked if there was a good effect flowing from GTA VI’s launch for the larger gaming industry.
He said, “Good question. In general, hits are good for an entertainment business, not just for the company that launches the hit title in question, but also for the entire industry because people are engaged with interactive entertainment, and then they want more of it because it’s such a great medium.”
And Zelnick added, “So, I think while it’s possible there was some dampening effect in the past couple of months as consumers anticipate GTA VI, I think post-release, one way or the other, I think the business will benefit. Also, of course, the launch of GTA VI undoubtedly has sold consoles, and so there will be a larger install base, and all the industry participants (including Take-Two) should benefit from that.
I asked if the PC version of GTA VI, the online version, and the user-generated content would be coming soon or over a longer period of time. He said, “As you know, questions like that are always addressed in the fullness of time by our labels.”
Regarding the industry’s state, I asked if there is a recovery under way, or at least a slowdown in industry layoffs.
Zelnick said it’s been a while since there have been huge layoffs.
“As an industry, (games) bounced back to growth well over a year ago, pretty much across the board.”
I noted that direc-to-consumer mobile game results stood out in the earnings announcement in a bigger way in this quarter.
Zelnick said, “We’re very happy for the performance of our mobile business. We have a lot of hits, and we continue to deliver new ones. We have titles that are performing exceedingly well right now. For example, Toon Blast, which grew 4% over last year’s record results, Words with Friends, which grew 6% year over year, and we have wonderful titles coming, including Top Goal. So our mobile business continues to perform incredibly well, and that’s very gratifying.”
K asked if he saw The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which launched last week, as competition for GTA VI. He noted it has a 96 out of 100 score on Metacritic.
“It’s terrific, and they should be very proud of the title. In the entertainment business, you compete against everything and and nothing. Everything because there’s so many ways consumers can spend their time, and nothing because if there’s nothing good out there, people don’t need to consume any of it. It’s like food; like food could be bad, but you still are going to be hungry. But in the case of entertainment, it’s not a must-have; it’s a want to have. So it’s our job to make the best entertainment on earth. When we do that, people will show up for it.”
Regarding NBA 2K 27, I noted that the game came in below expectations for its September launch. I asked if the main effect was that September was such a crowded month for games dodging GTA VI.
“Let’s just say it both correctly and in the positive. NBA 2K 27 is our second best launch of an NBA 2K title in history. It sold 4 million units. Our current consumer spending is up year over year. We feel great on NBA 2K27, and for the remainder of our year, we have more and better content coming than ever before. So I couldn’t feel better about it than I do. That said, it was a bit of a crowded time as people got out of the way of GTA VI, our sports title did significantly better pound for pound than our competitors, which were all down materially year over year. So we feel as good as we possibly can, and there probably were some exogenous circumstances, including some caused by our very own company to affect the market.”
I asked if he was worried that serial games that come out every year may not perform as well as they have in the past.
“No, not necessarily. If they’re great, they’ll do great. If they’re bad, they’ll do bad.”