The VanEck Video Gaming and eSports ETF (ESPO), a benchmark for the video game industry, fell more than 3% in the past year, compared with a 6% drop in the Russell 1000 Index. Take Two owns major franchises such as Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead, NBA 2K, and WWE 2K. It also recently acquired mobile and social networking game developer Zynga, creator of Farmville and Words With Friends. Even though it has proved to be a popular gaming stock following its IPO in 2021, recent Q2 revenue of $639.9m was slightly lower than expected.
- The teams play across major titles including Apex Legends, FIFA, Fortnite, Rocket League and Valorant.
- Over the past few years, esports and game streaming have rapidly moved from the fringe to the mainstream, and viewership is challenging that of traditional sports.
- Another potential option for investing in esports is using an ETF (exchange-traded fund).
- Trading as SEMP as on the AQSE Growth Market, Semper Fortis Esports quietly launched in 2020 with Atari founder Nolan Bushnell as a board director and made headlines upon going public in April 2021.
Consumer spending on video games soared to over $60 billion in 2021 from $43 billion in 2019. Sales have declined since then, but developments in AI and virtual reality could make 2023 a memorable year for video game stocks. The company trades on the NYSE under the ticker symbol “SE.” Some of Sea’s offerings include online gaming services, e-wallet and payments services, forex patterns and management of third-party online marketplaces. Tencent is a Chinese video-gaming company that’s the largest in the world based on revenue. It’s also a multimedia conglomerate that holds the WeChat social network and many other gaming companies. The most popular esports ETF on the Freetrade app last year was the VanEck Video Gaming and eSports UCITS ETF USD Acc.
Free Fire has a burgeoning esports scene as well — the Free Fire World Series 2019 achieved over 100 million cumulative views, with more than 1 million concurrent viewers for the Brazilian qualifiers. ESL, formerly known as ‘Electronic Sports League’, is the world’s largest esports-dedicated company, offering services in gaming technology, event management, advertising, and media production. Each year, ESL runs 13 mega esports events with thousands of attendees and millions of viewers online.
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There’s no reason to rush into an investing decision when you’re in it for the long haul. Games companies are primarily involved in the business of developing and distributing gaming software. In several cases, these companies own and operate competitive esports leagues. Revenue flatlined at Los Angeles-based NRG after its CDL and OWL teams had to cancel ticketed easy-way trade in-person events and stage them online for free. Some of the gap was filled with its higher-margin online content business, including sponsored streams on Twitch and videos on YouTube. Last month, the company opened the Castle, a funhouse, gamers’ version of a fraternity house and production studio to churn out digital content that can be sold to sponsors.
Even the most seasoned investors conduct research before purchasing stocks, so you’ll want to poke around and learn a little. It’s helpful to create a watchlist of stocks and ETFs in the gaming and eSports sector. On the Public app, you can start with any stocks and ETFs that interest you, marking them as favorites without investing and keeping an eye on them as part of your daily or weekly routine. As these companies ask for a higher cost per share, many people with low investment budgets usually don’t have enough money to invest in these companies flexibly.
Esports investment trusts
And finally, Activision Blizzard Studios is in charge of creating content for film and television. With revenue expected to fall to $8.5 million this year, the team’s value is less than half the $260 nvidia stock forecast million Forbes estimated in 2019. But the pivot comes at a cost as investors have shredded the multiples they are willing to pay for competitive teams while valuing the newer businesses at even less.
Also, various new monetization models enable video game companies to devise strategies that encourage consumers to spend money on products after the initial purchase of a game or hardware. The emergence of immersive, metaverse-style gaming may also attract a new global audience. Video game companies benefited early in the COVID-19 pandemic as many consumers sheltered at home and turned to at-home entertainment.
FaZe now boasts over 230 million followers across all its related social platforms and is worth $305 million to rank No. 4. Esports companies earn money through broadcast licensing deals, merchandise sales, live-event ticket sales, sponsorships, and advertising. Companies can also sell exclusive rights to operate esports teams within official leagues. Competitive gaming leagues can also function as advertisements for the underlying franchises.
Because profits can be returned to shareholders through dividends and buybacks, a low P/E ratio shows you’re paying less for each dollar of profit generated. The following is just a handful of video game companies that are publicly traded. It’s hard to predict when esports companies will make the decision to go public. But, if you want to stay up to date with all the latest upcoming IPOs, it’s worth keeping an eye on the Freetrade IPO calendar and IPO news page. There are popular gaming hardware stocks such as Nvidia (NVDA) and Corsair Gaming (CRSR) that aren’t solely tied to esports, but do supply gaming chips and peripherals that are essential to the industry.
Following a “surprise launch”, the title amassed 25 million registered players in its first week, and 50 million in its first month. As early as three months following its launch, esports organizations began to field teams in Apex. Viewership for the title has struggled to keep pace with its initial success, which was driven by a streamer-focused marketing campaign. Its video game offerings cover many genres, from sports to action/adventure to role playing to family games.
Guild Esports
In terms of revenue, Tencent is the largest gaming company in the world. In 2018, it earned more than $19 billion in gaming software sales, representing 18.4% of the global market. The Chinese company owns stakes in several notable game publishers, game developers, and livestreaming platforms.
A single eSports company can be responsible for financing a tournament through brand partnerships, creating streaming broadcasts, and distributing that content sometimes to platforms. For some more guidance, you can read our in depth guide on how to invest in stocks. Whichever way you decide to invest in esports stocks, make sure that you only use these investments to play a part of your diversified portfolio. This game developer is unique because it allows users to create their own games.
The Gaming Stadium
While the likes of Cloud9 and Envy Gaming are raising eye-watering amounts privately, Guild chose to go public just months after launching. Esports is a growing industry but some would say that we’re building the plane as we’re flying it, especially since much of what is happening has never been done before. It’s developing on a constant basis and many trends are emerging because of that — one of which is companies in the space listing themselves publicly. Just remember that, while thematic ETFs like this one do diversify between companies, they’re all ultimately connected to the gaming industry. If there’s a sudden shock or boon that affects the whole sector, it’s likely the entire ETF will feel it.
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The company’s hugely popular Grand Theft Auto series is not an esport, but the online version of GTA V has generated high player engagement — suggesting big esports potential for Take-Two. Trading as TIDL on the Canadian Securities Exchange, Tiidal Gaming is the parent company of esports organization Lazarus and business-to-business esports data provider Sportsflare. Their mission to enable the “next generation of esports” and build the “future of game-based entertainment”.
For more information on risks and conflicts of interest, see these disclosures. No offer to buy securities can be accepted, and no part of the purchase price can be received, until an offering statement filed with the SEC has been qualified by the SEC. An indication of interest to purchase securities involves no obligation or commitment of any kind. Retail investors can buy stocks in many video game companies individually.
Together with the National Basketball Association (NBA), Take-Two Interactive co-founded the NBA 2K League, a professional esports league that launched in 2018. The league features 23 six player teams that compete in five-on-five play in a mix of regular season games, tournaments and playoffs. The three publicly traded esports stocks listed below have the biggest market caps in the esports industry. They are listed in alphabetical order, and all data was retrieved using TradingView’s stock screener on August 1, 2022.
