THQ STOCK DIPS SLIGHTLY ON NEWS OF GAME DELAYS.Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer CALABASAS - Shares of THQ THQ Toy Headquarters THQ Territorial Headquarters THQ Tehsil Headquarters (Pakistan) THQ The Holy Quran THQ Theater Headquarters Inc. declined 3 percent Thursday after the video-game manufacturer announced shipping delays for two products and cut its earnings forecast for the second quarter. THQ shares fell 48 cents to close at $15.45 on the Nasdaq market. The company said late Wednesday that action-adventure title ``Sphinx sphinx (sfĭngks), mythical beast of ancient Egypt, frequently symbolizing the pharaoh as an incarnation of the sun god Ra. The sphinx was represented in sculpture usually in a recumbent position with the head of a man and the body of a lion, and the Cursed Mummy'' for the PlayStation 2 computer system is expected to ship in North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. on Nov. 10 while ``Warhammer 40,000: Firewarrior'' for the PlayStation 2 will be released during the third quarter. Both games were previously expected for release in late September. ``We needed more time to polish the games,'' said Liz Pieri, a THQ spokeswoman. She said the extra time is critical to ensure the best possible product quality. ``I'm concerned about the late release. But the company is better off releasing a good game late than a bad game on time,'' said Michael Pachter, analyst with Wedbush Morgan Securities in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . The Calabasas-based company lowered its second-quarter earnings guidance to 1 cent per share from 8 cents per share Cents per share The amount of a mutual fund's dividend or capital gains distributions that a shareholder will receive for each share owned. . THQ maintained net income guidance in the range of 80 cents to 85 cents per diluted share for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2004. The consensus of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call predicts that THQ will earn 9 cents in the second quarter and 84 cents the next fiscal year. ``I'm a little surprised by the guidance, but I only think it hurts THQ in the near term. They did make a good business decision not to rush these games out,'' said Arvind Bhatia at Southwest Securities Inc. in Texas. The two games are new titles for THQ, a characteristic that increases the importance of the initial shipment of such products. Edward Williams, analyst with Harris Mesbitt Gerard in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , said the company must be careful when introducing a new game because it needs to garner the right attention. ``It's important because so many products are susceptible to falling off the shelf (not selling),'' Williams said. Also on Thursday, the company said it had secured publishing rights to ATV Offroad Fury ATV Offroad Fury is a hit PlayStation 2/PlayStation Portable Racing game, released in February 2001. Developer ATV Offroad Fury and its sequel ATV Offroad Fury 2 were developed by Rainbow Studios, whose work includes the Splashdown 2 for the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system for Europe, Australia and other international territories. The game, developed by THQ's Rainbow Studios and owned by Sony Computer Entertainment America, is the second installment in one of the most successful North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. PlayStation 2 franchises to date, the company said. Evan Pondel, (818) 713-3662 evan.pondel(at)dailynews.com |
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