Activision Blizzard’s recent tumult could be a buying opportunity for investors, according to Barclays. Regulators in the UK blocked Microsoft’s attempt to purchase the company over competition concerns. Shares of Activision Blizzard fell 11.5% Wednesday on the news. But Barclays raised its target price on the video game company to $100 from $95 per share, representing 30% upside from Wednesday’s close of $76.81. ATVI YTD mountain Activision Blizzard could be a buying opportunity for investors despite the fallout of Microsoft deal. “We continue to view ATVI as the strongest US gaming publisher fundamentally, with record sales from its latest Call of Duty title Modern Warfare 2 and two large upcoming catalysts in Diablo 4 (we are modeling 15m units with potential for upside) and the potential launch of Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile later this year,” Barclays analyst Mario Lu wrote Wednesday. The company beat estimates on both earnings per share and revenue on Wednesday despite the fallout, reporting 60 cents adjusted (against 52 cents estimate) and $1.8 billion, respectively. Lu said the move to stop the Microsoft deal was somewhat surprising, given that regulators seemingly eased up on concerns over the takeover at the end of March. Activision executives told investors the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority was “disproportionate, irrational and inconsistent.” Microsoft plans to appeal the CMA decision, although it’s unlikely regulators will reverse their decision. “Despite the deal likely dead in water, we view this as a strong buying opportunity given its cheap relative valuation to EA, momentum in core franchises (CoD/Candy Crush), along with upcoming catalysts in Diablo 4/Warzone Mobile,” Lu said. — CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
