Investing.com - Video game stocks tumbled in midday trading, as weekend release figures for a major title raised some more questions about consumer spending.
Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI) stock fell about 7.4% at 11:35 AM ET (15:35 GMT) after reporting sales numbers for the first three days of release of “Call of Duty: Black Ops 4.”
The stock was the biggest loser in the S&P Communication Services index, which was down about 1.3%.
Activision reported three-day sell-through of $500 million for the latest title in the popular franchise, with player count and hours played rising year over year.
But with the price at $59.99, that would mean unit sales of 8.33 million, which was lower than some analyst estimates of about 10 million units, Briefing.com reported.
Activision’s weakness bled into the stocks of competitors, as investors wondered what other big-name releases might face less than a blockbuster reception.
Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO) fell about 4.7% and Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) lost about 3%.
Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) was also a drag on the communications services sector as enthusiasm about its strong subscriber numbers reported Tuesday continued to wane.
Netflix stock lost about 4.4%.