Executive Summary

Q3 FY25 was mixed: GAAP EPS of $1.11 beat guidance while net bookings of $2.215B missed prior Q3 guidance due to softer EA SPORTS FC 25 acquisition and competitive-cohort engagement; Dragon Age underperformed versus expectations .
Management lowered FY25 outlook: net bookings to $7.0–$7.15B (from $7.5–$7.8B) and GAAP net revenue to $7.25–$7.40B; non-GAAP operating margin still targeted at ~30.5–31.6% and ASR of $1B announced to support capital returns (total buybacks expected at $2.5B in year one) .
EA SPORTS FC momentum turned positive post Jan 16 gameplay update; over 2M Ultimate Team players reactivated and Team of the Year event delivered record weekly active users, informing a prudent but optimistic Q4 guide and FY26 return to growth narrative .
American Football ecosystem remained strong, on pace to surpass $1B in FY25 net bookings; Apex Legends tracked in-line with expectations albeit down YoY; Sims delivered growth and broader engagement initiatives continue (EA Sports app, TRACAB acquisition, Battlefield Labs) .
Near-term stock reaction catalysts: ASR ($1B), record engagement events for FC, College Football momentum, and Battlefield Labs community testing ahead of FY26 launch window .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well

American Football: weekly active users and total unique spenders up double digits in Q3; business remains on track to exceed $1B in FY25 net bookings .
EA SPORTS FC turnaround: January 16 gameplay update plus Team of the Year reactivated >2M Ultimate Team players and drove year-over-year net bookings growth during the event; record weekly active users over the event weekend .
Capital returns and margins: announced $1B ASR (total $2.5B buybacks in year one of $5B authorization); GAAP operating margin 20.0% and non-GAAP operating margin 30.1% in Q3 .

What Went Wrong

EA SPORTS FC 25 underperformance: softer top-of-funnel acquisition (players stayed on prior iterations) and accelerated engagement churn in competitive cohort; global football net bookings down mid-single digits YoY in Q3 .
Dragon Age: The Veilguard engagement fell ~50% short of expectations in quarter; title underperformed financial plan in a competitive single-player RPG market .
Apex Legends: net bookings down YoY and below original ambition; monetization mix evolving and content cadence adjustments in progress; Q4 expected declines in Apex contribute to guide prudence .

Financial Results

Core Financials vs prior year and prior quarter

Metric	Q3 FY24	Q2 FY25	Q3 FY25
Net Revenue ($USD Billions)	$1.945	$2.025	$1.883
GAAP EPS ($)	$1.07	$1.11	$1.11
Gross Margin (%)	73%	78%	76%
GAAP Operating Margin (%)	18.8%	19%	20.0%
Non-GAAP Operating Margin (%)	28.4%	28.4% (implied from table)	30.1%
Net Bookings ($USD Billions)	$2.366	$2.080	$2.215
Operating Cash Flow ($USD Billions)	$1.264	$0.234	$1.176

Actual vs Prior Q3 Guidance (midpoint)

Metric	Prior Guidance Midpoint (Q3)	Actual Q3 FY25
Net Bookings ($USD Billions)	$2.475 (range $2.4–$2.55B)	$2.215
Net Revenue ($USD Billions)	$1.950 (range $1.875–$2.025B)	$1.883
Cost of Revenue ($USD Millions)	$465 (range $450–$480M)	$456
Operating Expenses ($USD Billions)	$1.125 (range $1.10–$1.15B)	$1.050
GAAP Diluted EPS ($)	$0.935 (range $0.85–$1.02)	$1.11

Bold interpretations: Net bookings and net revenue missed guidance midpoints; EPS beat guidance range. The shortfalls were driven by FC acquisition softness and cohort churn; EPS benefited from lower OpEx and cost mix .

Segment and Platform Mix

Metric ($USD Millions)	Q3 FY24	Q2 FY25	Q3 FY25
Full Game Net Revenue	$618	$716	$599
Live Services & Other Net Revenue	$1,327	$1,309	$1,284
Console Net Revenue	$1,229	$1,374	$1,215
PC & Other Net Revenue	$420	$364	$392
Mobile Net Revenue	$296	$287	$276

KPIs and Cash Returns

KPI	Q3 FY25
Ultimate Team Players Reactivated (EA SPORTS FC 25)	>2,000,000
Dividend per Share ($)	$0.19 (declared, payable Mar 19, 2025)
ASR Announced ($USD Billions)	$1.0 (target $2.5B repurchases in year one)
Free Cash Flow ($USD Billions, Quarter)	$1.126

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Net Bookings ($USD Billions)	FY25	$7.5–$7.8	$7.0–$7.15	Lowered
GAAP Net Revenue ($USD Billions)	FY25	$7.4–$7.7	$7.25–$7.40	Lowered
GAAP Operating Margin (%)	FY25	19.3–21.1	19.2–20.5	Slightly Lowered
Non-GAAP Operating Margin (%)	FY25	30.7–32.1	30.5–31.6	Slightly Lowered
Diluted EPS ($)	FY25	$3.82–$4.33	$3.90–$4.25	Narrowed/Adjusted
Operating Cash Flow ($USD Billions)	FY25	$2.075–$2.275	$1.8–$1.9	Lowered
Net Bookings ($USD Billions)	Q4 FY25	N/A (not provided in Q2)	$1.444–$1.594	New
GAAP Net Revenue ($USD Billions)	Q4 FY25	N/A	$1.682–$1.832	New
EPS ($)	Q4 FY25	N/A	$0.65–$1.00	New
Cost of Revenue ($USD Millions)	Q4 FY25	N/A	$305–$315	New
Operating Expenses ($USD Billions)	Q4 FY25	N/A	~$1.112–$1.122	New
Dividend	Quarterly	N/A	$0.19 declared	Announced

Drivers: Outlook cuts reflect FC HD declines in December/early January and Dragon Age shortfall; prudence maintained despite January update momentum and event pipeline .

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q1 & Q2)	Current Period (Q3)	Trend
EA SPORTS FC performance	Q2: FC platform thriving; Rush social play expanding; Live services growth; planning EA Sports app Spain soft launch	Q3: Underperformed due to acquisition softness and competitive cohort churn; gameplay update reactivated >2M players; record Team of the Year metrics	Temporary setback, improving post-update
American Football ecosystem	Q2: Audience doubled; MVP bundle success; on track >$1B net bookings FY25	Q3: Double-digit WAU/spenders; still on pace to exceed $1B FY25	Strong and expanding
Apex Legends trajectory	Q1/Q2: Seasonal changes, monetization mix; need systematic innovation; comps easing H2	Q3: Down YoY but in-line; sequential improvements; Season 24 upcoming; broader plan post-Battlefield window	Stabilizing, retooling for growth
AI/Technology initiatives	Q1: AI/ML accelerated 11k athlete star heads in College Football	Q3: Unification under new CTO; TRACAB acquisition to enhance gameplay realism and data-led experiences	Platformize technology and data
EA Sports app	Q2: Soft launch in Spain with La Liga, bridging real and virtual fandom	Q3: Vision reiterated; TRACAB to accelerate app plans and interactive content creation	Building toward scaled rollout
Battlefield	Q2: Pipeline building; FY26 window	Q3: Battlefield Labs announced; community response “overwhelmingly positive”; flexible FY26 timing amid competitive slate	Robust pre-launch community testing
The Sims	Q2: Broader platform and UGC strategy; upcoming creator kits and cozy bundle	Q3: 25th anniversary initiatives; content drops, retro bundles; community engagement and media partnerships	Engagement expanding and multi-modal

Management Commentary

“We consider this to be a temporary moment, not structural. Our global football franchise net bookings have grown over 70% over the last 5 fiscal years… FY’25 is still expected to be the second biggest year for the franchise.” – Andrew Wilson, CEO .
“Since the gameplay release, we have seen a significant turnaround… competitive cohorts trending towards prior year levels… net bookings up year-over-year during the event.” – Stuart Canfield, CFO .
“Today, we’re announcing our plans for a $1 billion accelerated stock repurchase… bringing total stock repurchases to $2.5 billion in the first year of our $5 billion authorization.” – Stuart Canfield, CFO .
“We reached an agreement to acquire TRACAB technologies… best-in-class optical sports tracking… extend EA Sports’ lead.” – Andrew Wilson, CEO .
“Battlefield Labs… community testing program… response… overwhelmingly positive.” – Andrew Wilson, CEO .

Q&A Highlights

FC acquisition and engagement: Underperformance linked to players staying on prior iterations and defensive gameplay balance; large January update addressed cohort concerns, reactivating 2M Ultimate Team players and delivering record event metrics .
Battlefield Labs reception: Community response exceeded expectations; team using Labs to tune and validate at scale; flexible FY26 timing to optimize launch window .
Apex roadmap: Supporting core community, season content getting larger; contemplating a more meaningful update post-Battlefield; longer-term “Apex 2.0” vision .
College Football and American Football growth: Ecosystem synergy (Madden + College) fueling broader player base; expectation to grow in FY26 even excluding Battlefield .
Rush mode and technical stability: Rush is the second most played FC mode and additive to monetization; overall server stability comparable or better than prior iterations .

Estimates Context

Wall Street consensus (S&P Global) for Q3 FY25 could not be retrieved due to SPGI request limits; as a result, we cannot compare actual results to Street consensus at this time. Values retrieved from S&P Global were unavailable due to system constraints.
Directionally, versus EA’s prior Q3 guidance midpoints: net bookings and net revenue missed; EPS exceeded the range, aided by lower OpEx and cost mix .

Key Takeaways for Investors

FC underperformance appears transitory; post-update event metrics and reactivation suggest improving engagement heading into Q4, supporting a FY26 rebound narrative .
American Football remains a structural growth pillar, with FY25 net bookings on pace >$1B and ecosystem synergies (MVP bundle, connected modes) sustaining momentum into FY26 .
FY25 guidance reset de-risks near term; management is balancing investment with discipline (lower OpEx, ASR), targeting non-GAAP margins >30% and cash generation resilience .
Apex is being managed for stability now, with larger seasonal drops and potential step-change innovation post-Battlefield; upside optionality if systemic updates re-accelerate engagement .
Battlefield Labs and TRACAB acquisition reinforce EA’s technology and community-centric development; flexible FY26 launch timing mitigates competitive calendar risks .
The Sims and EA Sports app strategy broaden multi-modal engagement and UGC, expanding TAM beyond core gameplay toward create/watch/connect experiences .
Near-term trading: ASR buyback and positive FC event momentum are supportive; monitor Q4 FC HD performance versus prudent guide, Apex Season 24 progression, and any additional pipeline clarity in May .

ELECTRONIC ARTS INC. (EA)·Q3 2025 Earnings Summary