Take-Two Interactive shares advanced more than 3% in Tuesday’s premarket trading after the video game publisher reported second-quarter results and confirmed that Grand Theft Auto VI will be released on 19 November 2026. ADVFN reported the premarket rise on 10 November, despite a third-quarter bookings forecast that fell below analysts’ expectations.

The shares had moved the other way first. They fell about 4% in extended trading on Monday after the results were released after the market closed, according to StockVolt, citing Reuters, before recovering in Tuesday’s premarket session as investors focused on the imminent launch.

Bookings fall 18% as NBA 2K disappoints

Net bookings for the fiscal second quarter, ended 30 September, fell 18% to $1,601.3 million from $1,960.5 million a year earlier, the company said in its earnings release. Reuters reported that analysts had expected $1.67 billion, according to StockVolt’s account of the results.

GAAP net revenue was $1,497.0 million, down from $1,773.8 million a year earlier. The net loss was $54.0 million, or $0.29 per share, narrower than the loss of $133.9 million, or $0.73 per share, in the same quarter last year. Recurrent consumer spending, which covers items such as in-game purchases, totalled $1,302.1 million, down 9% and making up 81% of total net bookings.

Jefferies analysts attributed part of the shortfall to lower-than-expected activity associated with the NBA 2K franchise, saying second-quarter bookings were $20 million below the low end of the company’s guidance, mainly because of NBA 2K.

Guidance below consensus, full-year outlook held

For the current quarter, which includes the launch of Grand Theft Auto VI, Take-Two forecast net bookings of $3.35 billion to $3.50 billion. The upper end of that range was slightly below the analyst consensus estimate of $3.51 billion, ADVFN reported. The company also forecast diluted net income of $1.30 to $1.44 per share for the third quarter.

Take-Two issued fiscal 2027 earnings guidance of $0.57 to $0.75 per share, alongside a revenue forecast of $7.98 billion to $8.18 billion, below the analyst expectation of $8.51 billion. Separately, management reiterated its full-year net bookings outlook of $8.0 billion to $8.2 billion.

GTA VI is the test

Take-Two confirmed that Grand Theft Auto VI remained scheduled to launch on 19 November 2026 for Sony’s PlayStation 5 and Microsoft’s Xbox Series X|S consoles, ten days after the earnings announcement. Chairman and chief executive Strauss Zelnick said pre-orders continued to reach unprecedented levels.

“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 said. “We are reiterating our outlook for Fiscal 2027 Net Bookings of $8 to $8.2 billion.”

Reuters, cited by StockVolt, reported about 7.71 million digital pre-orders worldwide as of 3 November, based on Sensor Tower data, at an estimated gross revenue of more than $750 million. That figure is an estimate from a third-party tracker, not a company disclosure.

The next test is the launch itself. The December quarter’s bookings range sits slightly below the analyst average, and the full-year range was left unchanged, so early sales of Grand Theft Auto VI will show how much of Take-Two’s guidance depends on the new game.