Activision Blizzard: Guitar Hero World Tour Launches; Earnings Loom; Recession Proof, Or Recession Resistant?

Activision Blizzard (ATVI) shares are sliding following this weekend’s debut of Guitar Hero World Tour, the latest version of the company’s popular music game. UBS analyst Benjamin Schachter says his assessment of the first day of sales was mixed: near sell-out sales of Wii and Xbox 360 versions of the game at many locations, with PS3 kids often in stock. He said the guitar-only and game-only versions of the games were shipped in larger quantities but did not seem to be selling as well as the full version of the game. He also says that a small minority of buyers are reporting issues with the drum kit that comes with the game. On a broader subject, Schachter says the video game industry is likely to be recession resistant, but not necessarily recession-proof. Meanwhile, Kaufman Bros. analyst Todd Mitchell today repeated his Buy rating and $17.50 target on the stock. “We are concerned about Activision’s aggressive targets for Guitar Hero and a business plan predicated ... (link)