WIRED Staff
Culture

JBL on Game Stocks

Hi there! Looks like John “Bradshaw” Layfield — WWE champion cum accomplished Wall Street analyst — has cast his eye on game industry stocks: There is a normal deferral period when gamers are waiting on the new consoles. I believe the delayed launch of PS3 is the reason for slow sales in video games. With […]

Hi there! Looks like John "Bradshaw" Layfield -- WWE champion cum accomplished Wall Street analyst -- has cast his eye on game industry stocks:

There is a normal deferral period when gamers are waiting on the new consoles. I believe the delayed launch of PS3 is the reason for slow sales in video games. With PS3 scheduled to be in stores just before Christmas, this could mean a fantastic year-end for game makers. A new console cycle has helped increase sales by 30% on average.

Up until this past year, game makers were flying high. Activision grew net earnings annually on an average of 61% from 2001 to 2005. Activision had increased margins every year and had a return on invested capital of 45%. However, then came the delay in PlayStation 3.