We reiterate our OUTPERFORM recommendation and a revised target price of S$0.35 based on a DCF valuation method. Growth through acquisition • Continued M&A strategy to drive inorganic growth. Since its IPO, Winking Studios has strategically expanded its presence in Asia through the acquisition of two art outsourcing studios in Taiwan and Malaysia. This aligns with the company’s broader strategy of utilizing mergers and acquisitions to strengthen its position as a market leader in the art outsourcing industry. Its successful placement of new shares further supports its ongoing efforts to grow its market position through strategic acquisitions. • Organic growth in the Japanese market. 1H24 revenue grew 7.1% YoY to US15.2mn from US$14.2mn in 1H23, driven by a surge in orders from both its

Monopoly GO! -- has become one of the top mobile games of all time and grossed billions in revenue since it launched last year. Hasbro has also acquired Wizards of the Coast, the makers of Magic: The Gathering, and they own the best-selling video game Baldur's Gate 3. So why is gaming such a big growth market for a traditional toymaker? Where's the market heading? And how does a big company judge the success of freemium apps like Monopoly GO!? https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-08-09/hasbro-ceo-on-the-toymaker-s-digital-gaming-push

MICROSOFT kicked off its annual Xbox Games Showcase on Sunday (Jun 9), unveiling a new all-digital version of its Xbox Series X and S consoles as well as trailers for more than a dozen games including the next instalment of Call of Duty. The Games Showcase comes at a crucial time for Xbox and Microsoft as the gaming industry faces a downturn and publishers grapple with softer sales, layoffs and studio shutdowns. Microsoft showed off three gaming consoles including a disc-less version of the Xbox Series X and S consoles, and a special edition of the Series X with two terabytes of storage. The hardware refresh could help Xbox boost sales of its consoles which compete with Sony’s PlayStation 5. Among the games on display was Doom: The Dark Ages, the latest instalment in the long-running Doom

South Korean company marks country's second-biggest IPO this year Shift Up raised 435 billion won ($315 million) in its IPO as it floated 12.5% of its stake by issuing 7.25 million new shares. It is the second-biggest IPO so far this year in South Korea, following HD Hyundai Marine Solution, which raised 742 billion won in May. The listing comes as Seoul's IPO market recovers from a long slump since the pandemic. An online bank, K-Bank, is also preparing for a market debut later this year. Shift Up is South Korea's fourth-largest game developer, having a lineup of Nikke: Goddess of Victory and Stellar Blade. The company plans to use the proceeds from the IPO for developing new games and content as well as doing research for artificial intelligence and other new technology. https://asia.nik

https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/lifestyle/tencents-dungeon-fighter-game-dominates-chinas-mobile-download-charts TENCENT Holdings’s newly launched Dungeon & Fighter (DnF Mobile) has got off to a strong start, dominating top-grossing charts on Apple’s iOS platform in China for nearly a month, industry data showed. The game, launched in the world’s biggest gaming market on May 21, broke the US$100 million revenue mark in just 10 days, according to a report released by data analytics firm Sensor Tower this week. It also topped the global mobile game revenue growth chart for May and ranked 8th in overall revenue. In the first 10 days of its launch, DnF Mobile’s revenue in China’s iOS market surpassed the combined earnings of Tencent’s other popular titles Honor of Kings and PUBG Mobile, ac

‘Dungeon & Fighter Mobile’ is off to a hot start in China https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/lifestyle/tencents-new-blockbuster-game-exceeds-us270-million-30-days

‌$WinkingStudios(WKS)$ ‌ Video gaming sales, traditionally Tencent’s strongest revenue driver, grew 14% in the domestic market Tencent Holdings, operator of China’s biggest social media app and the world’s largest video gaming business by revenue, beat analyst estimates with a 47 per cent profit jump in the third quarter, helped by renewed growth in the video gaming segment. Profit reached 53.2 billion yuan (US$7.4 billion) in the three months ended September, up from 36.2 billion yuan in the same period a year ago. That exceeded the consensus estimates of 45.3 billion yuan from analysts polled by Bloomberg. Revenue for the Shenzhen-based firm reached 167.2 billion yuan, up 8 per cent year on year from 154.6 billion. It was in line with analyst estimates of 167.9 billion yuan. “During

‌$WinkingStudios(WKS)$  ‌UOB Kay Hian: Winking Studios (WKS SP/ BUY / TP S$0.38) *Game-changing moves ahead to accelerate growth; Raise target price by 9%* Analyst: Heidi Mo (UOBKH) *1H24 earnings below expectations* WKS reported 1H24 revenue of US$15m (+7% yoy) and core net profit of US$1.2m (-34% yoy), forming 47% and 28% of our full year forecasts respectively. Core earnings miss came from weaker margins (-3ppt yoy) from post-acquisition integration and higher marketing exp (+86% yoy). Excluding acquisitions, GPM was stable yoy at 30%. *Revenue grew 11% yoy in local currencies* from increased orders across both Art Outsourcing (+7% yoy) and Game Development (+8% yoy) segments. *Robust 2H24 pipeline* with ~US$10m of indicative bookings as o

*Game-changing moves ahead to accelerate growth; Raise target price by 9%* Analyst: Heidi Mo (UOBKH) *1H24 earnings below expectations* WKS reported 1H24 revenue of US$15m (+7% yoy) and core net profit of US$1.2m (-34% yoy), forming 47% and 28% of our full year forecasts respectively. Core earnings miss came from weaker margins (-3ppt yoy) from post-acquisition integration and higher marketing exp (+86% yoy). Excluding acquisitions, GPM was stable yoy at 30%. *Revenue grew 11% yoy in local currencies* from increased orders across both Art Outsourcing (+7% yoy) and Game Development (+8% yoy) segments. *Robust 2H24 pipeline* with ~US$10m of indicative bookings as of 13 Aug to be fulfilled by end-24. *S$26.5m net proceeds from Jul placement to fund future acquisitions* WKS has completed 2 ea

TENCENT Holdings’ revenue accelerated its growth after the blockbuster summer release of Dungeon & Fighter Mobile helped lift China’s most valuable company out of a gaming trough. Revenue jumped 8 per cent to 161.1 billion yuan (S$29.7 billion) for the April-to-June period, versus the projected estimate of 161.4 billion yuan. Net income surged to 47.6 billion yuan, compared with the estimated 39.9 billion yuan. Competition in China’s US$40 billion-plus gaming arena sparked back to life this summer. DnF Mobile got off to a hot start and maintained momentum even with the debuts of major rival titles by NetEase and Genshin Impact studio Mihoyo. Tencent’s hack-and-slash game could rack up 22 billion yuan this year, or 3 per cent of Tencent’s total revenue, according to an estimate by Morni

‌$WinkingStudios(WKS)$  ‌Tencent-backed video game developer, Shift Up, Jumps in Seoul debut South Korean company marks country's second-biggest IPO this year Shift Up raised 435 billion won ($315 million) in its IPO as it floated 12.5% of its stake by issuing 7.25 million new shares. It is the second-biggest IPO so far this year in South Korea, following HD Hyundai Marine Solution, which raised 742 billion won in May. The listing comes as Seoul's IPO market recovers from a long slump since the pandemic. An online bank, K-Bank, is also preparing for a market debut later this year. Shift Up is South Korea's fourth-largest game developer, having a lineup of Nikke: Goddess of Victory and Stellar Blade. The company plans to use the proceeds from t

‌$WinkingStudios(WKS)$  ‌Video Games Are China’s Next Soft Power Grab https://newlinesmag.com/spotlight/video-games-are-chinas-next-soft-power-grab/ A highly anticipated release based on 'Journey to the West' shows the evolution of both an art form and a conduit of Communist Party influence In August 2020, Hangzhou-based developer Game Science released the first trailer for their upcoming action-adventure video game, Black Myth: Wukong, in which players take control of Monkey King Sun Wukong, the shapeshifting, cloud-surfing, demon-hunting antihero of the 16th-century Chinese novel “Journey to the West.” Within a day, the impressive trailer — which showed the simian facing off against the armies of heaven with his signature, size-adjustable m

https://newlinesmag.com/spotlight/video-games-are-chinas-next-soft-power-grab/ A highly anticipated release based on 'Journey to the West' shows the evolution of both an art form and a conduit of Communist Party influence In August 2020, Hangzhou-based developer Game Science released the first trailer for their upcoming action-adventure video game, Black Myth: Wukong, in which players take control of Monkey King Sun Wukong, the shapeshifting, cloud-surfing, demon-hunting antihero of the 16th-century Chinese novel “Journey to the West.” Within a day, the impressive trailer — which showed the simian facing off against the armies of heaven with his signature, size-adjustable magic staff, the Ruyi Jingu Bang — attracted more than 10 million views on the Chinese video-sharing site Bilibili and

https://gameworldobserver.com/2025/01/27/biggest-gaming-deals-2024-investgame-report InvestGame has released its annual gaming deals report. Here are the biggest transactions that took place in the industry last year, as well as key trends reflecting the current market environment. Key takeaways - According to InvestGame’s 2024 report, there were 665 closed deals in the games industry last year, up 14% from 2023. - Private equity was the largest sector in 2024, with 466 deals closed (+12.2% year-over-year). The number of M&A deals increased 18.5% to 147, excluding announced but not yet closed transactions. There were also 52 public offerings, up 18.1% year-over-year. - All 2024 deals had the total value of $23.2 billion, down 72.5% from 2023. However, there was a 46.8% increase when ex

‌$WinkingStudios(WKS)$  ‌Biggest video game deals of 2024, plus more takeaways from InvestGame’s annual report https://gameworldobserver.com/2025/01/27/biggest-gaming-deals-2024-investgame-report InvestGame has released its annual gaming deals report. Here are the biggest transactions that took place in the industry last year, as well as key trends reflecting the current market environment. Key takeaways - According to InvestGame’s 2024 report, there were 665 closed deals in the games industry last year, up 14% from 2023. - Private equity was the largest sector in 2024, with 466 deals closed (+12.2% year-over-year). The number of M&A deals increased 18.5% to 147, excluding announced but not yet closed transactions. There were also 52 publi

‌$WinkingStudios(WKS)$  ‌SAC Capital: Winking Studios - Riding the Wave of Global Gaming Winking Studios Limited. Winking Studios is the third largest art outsourcing studio in Asia and the fourth largest in the world, The company provides a range of services including 2D and 3D modeling, game development, and animation, servicing renowned game developers such as Ubisoft, Tencent, and NetEase. With operations across Asia and a growing global footprint, Winking ‘s focus on high-quality digital art assets and development services positions it to benefit from the increasing demand for outsourced game art services. Financial performance. In 1H2024, Winking reported revenue of US$15.2m, reflecting a 7.1% yoy growth. This was primarily driven by str

Winking Studios Limited. Winking Studios is the third largest art outsourcing studio in Asia and the fourth largest in the world, The company provides a range of services including 2D and 3D modeling, game development, and animation, servicing renowned game developers such as Ubisoft, Tencent, and NetEase. With operations across Asia and a growing global footprint, Winking ‘s focus on high-quality digital art assets and development services positions it to benefit from the increasing demand for outsourced game art services. Financial performance. In 1H2024, Winking reported revenue of US$15.2m, reflecting a 7.1% yoy growth. This was primarily driven by strong contributions from the Art Outsourcing and Game Development segments, with new contracts in Japan and South Korea. Gross profit decr

https://www.forbes.com/sites/paultassi/2025/01/07/the-most-expensive-video-game-on-record-is-this-call-of-duty-says-report/ While the reality of ballooning video game budgets has led to talk of AAA unsustainability in the industry, rarely do we get a look behind the curtain to see just how wild things have gotten for certain major franchises. Thanks to the incredibly sharp eye of GameFile’s Stephen Totilo, he managed to dig out the Activision-stated costs of three major Call of Duty games from 2015 to 2020, and among them is the most expensive video game ever made. At least one that’s confirmed its exact budget. The three games are brought up in the court filing, which was part of a lawsuit about the Uvalde Texas elementary school shooting that was filed against Activision. Here they are:

‌$WinkingStudios(WKS)$  ‌The Most Expensive Video Game On Record Is This ‘Call Of Duty,’ Says Report https://www.forbes.com/sites/paultassi/2025/01/07/the-most-expensive-video-game-on-record-is-this-call-of-duty-says-report/ While the reality of ballooning video game budgets has led to talk of AAA unsustainability in the industry, rarely do we get a look behind the curtain to see just how wild things have gotten for certain major franchises. Thanks to the incredibly sharp eye of GameFile’s Stephen Totilo, he managed to dig out the Activision-stated costs of three major Call of Duty games from 2015 to 2020, and among them is the most expensive video game ever made. At least one that’s confirmed its exact budget. The three games are brought up i

‌$WinkingStudios(WKS)$  ‌Magic monkey tale inspires China’s gaming industry to seek blockbuster success https://www.ft.com/content/24d330fe-6f82-4571-85ec-8e1d429d6da1 As Beijing eases regulations, developers are tooling up to produce big-budget titles with international appeal China’s video game industry is scaling up to release more blockbusters in 2025 after the breakout global success of “triple-A” title Black Myth: Wukong. In August, little-known Chinese developer Game Science achieved one of the fastest-selling debuts in gaming history with 10mn copies sold in three days of a title inspired by a classical Chinese novel about an anthropomorphic monkey with supernatural powers. The action role-playing game has since earned $1.1bn, with nea