Activision Should 'Man Up and Buy Take-Two' says AnalystActivision is swimming in cash. As it stands now, the publisher has around $3 billion in cash and no long-term debts. The record breaking sales of Modern Warfare 3 this past holiday season certainly didn't hurt. Take-Two meanwhile, even in non-GTA years, is faring much better, but the company continues to be a rumored takeover target. One analyst believes Activision should just get aggressive and buy Take-Two in advance of GTA V's launch.
Writing for IndustryGamers recentlty in a stocks-focused "Game Trader" feature, Asif Khan of Panoptic Management Consultants commented, "The bar has been set very high with the sales of Modern Warfare 3 and we are not sure how much longer they can keep pumping out the same IP before it goes all Tony Hawk on them. They should just man up and buy Take-Two Interactive. They could do it straight cash."
Indeed, Take-Two is only worth about $1.35 billion. Of course, shareholders would likely not approve a buyout that cheap. You could add on a premium, especially because of the impending launch of GTA V, of potentially another billion dollars. But even at that price, Activision could afford to do a mostly cash deal.
And if you think about it, Activision would benefit hugely from such a deal. Right now, the publisher continues to rely largely on Call of Duty and World of Warcraft, but with Take-Two, not only would they add the incredibly valuable GTA franchise, but also hits like BioShock and a very solid entry into sports with NBA 2K.
It's a win-win; Activision gets a huge IP boost and shareholders get good value.
