The9 Rises on 'World of Warcraft' Record
NEW YORK - Shares of The9 Ltd. rose Thursday after the Chinese online gaming company and Blizzard Entertainment Inc. said Blizzard's "World of Warcraft" game reached a record 800,000 simultaneous users.
The9 (nasdaq: NCTY - news - people ) operates the popular game in China, and said the player peak occurred after the company's Sept. 6 launch of a game expansion pack called "The Burning Crusade."
American depositary shares of Shanghai-based The9 gained $1.46, or 4.9 percent, to $31.36 in afternoon trading. During the past year, the stock has moved between $20.86 and $52.43.
The expansion pack adds more features such as new lands to the game, and has drawn both current and new players, the company said.
In a note to clients Thursday, Citi Investment Research analyst Jason Brueschke said he thinks "World of Warcraft" has been doing well since the pack launch, and noted that the company added two servers last week to support more players.
He thinks that in the third quarter The9 will meet or come in ahead of his estimate for $34 million in "World of Warcraft" revenue.
"If the user traffic continues to be strong, which we expect, we believe our fourth-quarter 2007 'World of Warcraft' revenue estimate of $49.8 million is also achievable," he wrote.
The analyst, who holds a $55 target price and "Buy" rating for the shares, added that a recent decline in The9's share price presents a good time for investors to purchase the stock.
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
World of Warcraft Clans
EverQuest 2 Review
Dungeons & Dragons Online Review
Lineage II Review
Guild Wars: Eye of the North Review
Former World of Warcraft
The9 Rises on 'World of Warcraft' Record
Xfire: World of Warcraft hours drop
Noob's Guide to Outland
Socketed Items
world of warcraft warth
Flying Mounts
World Environment
Wow Money Guide - 5 Effective Tips to Wow Riches
Bring on the wow factor
South Park World of Warcraft
Real war games
Public Test Realm Patch Notes
Dungeons and Raids
Feature: 'Is There Life After World Of Warcraft?
Aussies take on World of Warcraft
Mods and Add-ons
'World of Warcraft' news capsules
World of Warcraft has roots in Everquest
Leveling vs Gold Making
New WoW Toys Coming
Blizzard Launches the Warcraft Encyclopedia
World of Warcraft Hits 6.5 Million Players
New World of Warcraft Patch Out Today
World of Warcraft Outdoor PvP Coming
World of Warcraft Movie Contest Announced
Blizzard Lays Down the Law Again
New Details on World of Warcraft Expansion
World of Warcraft Character Transfer Service Begins
Celebrate Midsummer in Azeroth
University of Washington Digs World of Warcraft
More Good News for the Game Industry
Warcraft Movie Coming
Blizzard Lays Down the Law
Blizzard Convention Announced
WoW Expansion Confirmed
WoW Surpasses 2 Million
Battle for Middle-earth Designer Heads to Blizzard
World of Warcraft Shatters Records in Europe
Blizzard President Comments on WoW Issues
World Of Warcraft Still Selling Strong
World of Warcraft Is Setting Records
Shipping Today, Nov 23 2004
World Of Warcraft Launch Date Announced
WoW Coming Nov. 22? Yes? No ? Maybe So!
Hurricane Ivan Interrupts MMORPGs
More World of Warcraft Beta Accounts
Join the World of Warcraft stress test
World Of Warcraft gets hosted
World of Warcraft Patch Update
WoW Beta Update Soon
World of Warcraft Euro Beta Date
World of Warcraft Euro Beta Plans
World of Warcraft Auction Houses
Help Wanted: Blizzard
Blizzard Shows Off Tw
|
