Investor snapshot: Eidos sinks lower

Game companies saw mixed results Thursday as Wall Street attempted to shrug off the losses it suffered earlier in the week. Eidos (EIDSY), whose shares fell 23 percent yesterday, lost another 15 percent today, closing 14 cents lower at 77 cents. The sell-off followed news that the Tomb Raider publisher had lost 26.5 million pounds ($51 million) in the six months ended December 31, 2004, compared to the 7.1 million pounds ($13.6 million) it brought in during the same six months in 2003.

Electronic Arts (ERTS) shares lost 97 cents, closing at $68.49, while shares in Vivendi Universal (V) dropped 48 cents to $31.67. Jamdat Mobile (JMDT) shares dipped 28 cents to $16.74 at the closing bell. Activision (ATVI) shares were also down, closing 17 cents lower at $22.65.

Midway (MWY) shares declined 7 cents to $9.99. Konami (KNM) shares remained unchanged at the end of the day Thursday; shares in Atari (ATAR) and GameStop Corp (GME) rose by pennies.

Take-Two Interactive shares climbed 23 cents, closing at $40.74. THQ Inc. (THQI) shares also advanced, up 20 cents to $28.79, while shares in Electronics Boutique (ELBO) closed 20 cents higher at $38.55.

In the overseas markets, where the indices were hurt by yesterday's slump on Wall Street, Nintendo shares lost 110 yen ($1.06), closing at 11,700 ($112.36) on the Japanese exchange. In Paris, shares in Ubisoft fell .54 euros (72 cents) to 31.88 euros ($42.79) Thursday.

In the larger US markets, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 45.89 points, closing at 10,851.51. The Nasdaq Composite Index continued to decline, down 1.57 points to 2,059.72, while the S&P 500 rose 2.24 points to 1,209.25. Investors continued to balk at signs of inflation, according to Marketwatch, but the tech sector remained strong, with increases among shares in National Semiconductor, Altera Corp., Motorola, and Intel.

In the foreign markets...
In Europe, the markets were lower Thursday. Vivendi Universal, the conglomerate that produces everything from video games to telecommunications services, announced its 2004 earnings--and revealed its first annual profits (754 million euros, or $1 billion) since 2000. Following the news, Vivendi's European shares fell alongside its American ones, losing nearly 3 percent. In Asia, the Nikkei 225 Stock Index, Taiwan's Taiex, and South Korea's Kospi index declined Thursday.