Video Game Sales Clobbered

Spending on video games in the new physical channel by U.S. consumers dropped 8 percent to $17 billion last year, from $18.6 billion in 2010, said research firm NPD Group on Thursday.

Spending on all video-game content in the U.S. in 2011 grew to an estimated $16.3 billion to $16.6 billion, a decrease of about 2 percent from 2010.

Investing Insights: GameStop and Electronic Arts Punch S&P 500 Shares on Poor NPD Data.

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter tells Wall St. Cheat Sheet, “I think November tells you the industry is healthy, but December tells you that gift givers are more interested in hot products than old consoles.”

With final data not coming out until March, the current estimate includes new physical video and PC games, game rentals, used games, subscriptions, social network games, digital full-game downloads, downloadable content and mobile games. Pachter adds “Gift card volumes might be significant, reflecting a shift of sales forward into January.”

Retail sales of new physical sales of video-game content fell 8 percent to $9.3 billion, compared with $10.1 billion in 2010. Hardware sales and accessory sales each slid 11 percent to $5.6 billion and $2.6 billion, respectively.

Here’s how video game companies are reacting to the news:

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA): EA shares recently traded at $N/A,. They have traded in a 52-week range of $ to $. Volume today was shares versus a 3-month average volume of shares. The company’s trailing P/E is , while trailing earnings are $ per share.

Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI): ATVI shares recently traded at $12.32, down $0.24, or 1.91%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $10.40 to $14.40. Volume today was 3,603,741 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 10,564,000 shares. The company’s trailing P/E is 19.65, while trailing earnings are $0.63 per share.

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ:TTWO): TTWO shares recently traded at $14.45, down $0.13, or 0.89%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $10.63 to $17.58. Volume today was 545,592 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 2,226,860 shares. The company’s trailing earnings are $-0.47 per share.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT): MSFT shares recently traded at $27.97, down $0.03, or 0.11%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $23.65 to $29.46. Volume today was 23,993,938 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 52,759,600 shares. The company’s trailing P/E is 10.17, while trailing earnings are $2.75 per share.

THQ Inc. (NASDAQ:THQI): THQI shares recently traded at $0.67, down $0.04, or 5.63%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $1.48 to $6.53. Volume today was 1,269,135 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 1,947,170 shares. The company’s trailing earnings are $-2.77 per share.

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To contact the reporter on this story: Gina Smith at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com