Strong Q2 sales result in reduced losses and increased stock price for THQ

Boasting healthy second quarter sales and an improved product line-up for next generation consoles in 2006, THQ has announced net sales of USD 142.7 million; a record increase of 48 percent on last year's results.

The company posted a net loss of USD 1.4 million, a vast improvement on the USD 6.4 million loss for the same period in 2004, which CEO Brian Farrell attributes to strong sales of original IP such as Tak, Destroy All Humans and the illegal street racing title Juiced (acquired from the now defunct Acclaim Entertainment).

President and CEO Brian Farrell stated: "Our second quarter results reflected strong sales of our original properties as well as our industry leading portfolio of licensed properties, including WWE Day of Reckoning 2 and Scooby Doo! Unmasked."

"Our catalogue also continues to perform well, with The Incredibles, The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, and WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw moving to the PS2 Greatest Hits status during the second quarter," he added.

Looking forward to the full fiscal year ending March 31st, 2006, the company expects to best previous forecasts and analyst's predictions with net sales of approximately USD 770 million. Forthcoming releases include new Incredibles and SpongeBob SquarePants titles in addition to a number of licensed children's games and a dedicated PSP version of Juiced.

Farrell stated: "This holiday season we plan to bring to market games based on our most successful brands, targeted to the mass-market consumer on the huge installed base of current generation hardware."

In terms of next generation software titles, THQ has announced a delayed release for Xbox 360 title Saints Row, which won't see a release until the first quarter of the 2007 fiscal year, which runs between April and June 2006. Two further Xbox 360 titles (Moto GP 2006: Ultimate Racing Technology and WWII shooter, The Outfit) have also suffered delays and will now be released in the first half of 2006.

THQ currently has 13 next generation titles in development, and intends to distribute its portfolio between all three new consoles. Farrell suggested that the company's next generation development resources would see roughly forty percent allocated to both the Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles, with the remaining twenty percent allocated to Nintendo's Revolution console.

In related news, the unfeasibly long delay on PC title S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl continues and the company does not anticipate the title seeing a release before October 2006 at the earliest.

Despite the delayed titles, the company appears to be in great shape for the coming year and the stock price rose by approximately 5 percent following the revenue announcement. Share prices currently sit at just under USD 20.