Thanks for letting me take this one, bud. I really hate them.
Fantastic DD and I am very bearish on ATVI currently mainly due to their blizzard side of things fucking things up for many years now with no positive change in sight. I will be adding alot more sentiment later tonight when I get more time. In the mean time I found this article that was released yesterday, 11/24 on Seeking Alpha and will lay out the key point. Any bullish or bearish factors I can find I will try to add to this DD. I am scorned by blizzard and have a vendeta against them due to them fucking up my beloved franchises/games lol.
- L1 Capital International sees value in Activision Blizzard…
- L1 disclosed in a letter to investors that it has established a position in ATVI…
- …this recent decline as an opportunity to buy into a business it says has “a consistent ability to monetize key franchise titles.”
- L1 also noted that it has made similar trades in ATVI before. The fund described two other instances where it profitably bought and sold the stock during periods when it came under pressure
- “Activision Blizzard’s share price is often driven by short-term sentiment, both positive and negative,” the fund reported.
Thanks for the input, bud! Those are fine points.
I was scanning for bear plays and was really considering going back in on Puts for ATVI, and after my first post mishap with HOOD where someone else had posted on it, I checked the tickers first and found this one
If I find additional DD should I post in comments on this one?
A couple of things that are making me additionally bearish is the absolutely horrendous state of their overwatch franchise, with a wasteland with no new content while delays push OW2 further.
Also the exodus of players and loss of subscriptions to games like Final Fantasy 14, New World, and then the coming Ashes of Creation, it really seems like another nail in the coffin for Activision Blizzard specifically in their MMO dept. as well.
I played all of the games listed casually (except for AoC but will when it comes out!), my girl played them as well, and as a gamer and former streamer she has a pretty good insight as far as the pulse of the gaming community, and all I hear from her and other gamers I know is how much Blizzard is f***ing up in terms of the actual gaming content. Paired with all of the scandals going on with the corporate/PR side and problems in the C-Suite/execs level, I just see more dumpster fires brewing than any one company could handle in the middle of the current economic landscape + pandemic challenges.
Yes, just post in this one.
Today I’ll be looking at Game Reviews that were recently released / updated.
If you’d like to contribute, check out the games show above and find reviews on them too, please.
I’m taking on World of Warcraft and Diablo III for now.
I might add another 57 PUT if it tries to go over the VWAP again today.
1min Chart…
Barchart Opinion Ai update…
So many bad news surrounding this ticker, compounded by omicron in California where most of the offices reside (2 in SF).
It might be a crawl everyday, but so far tracking down to 54 real well.
Reminds me of that sweet ballad…
Look, down, down, baby
Oh, she goin’ crazy
Sweet, sweet baby
Damn, she never let me go
Down, down, baby
Oh, these bitches shady
Boom, boom, baby
You just like every ho
ATVI dipped to 55.30 in PreMarket today…
If it goes under 56 again, red will continue to flow with ease. For Ogrimmar!
@rexxxar I enjoyed the DD and the rest of the discussion and feel bearish about it. Would you say it will sink deeper ?
Another article with more bearish sentiment to pile on.
Everyone, thanks for your contributions to this thread.
While more bad press is coming out against ATVI, and little to no good stuff coming out of them, I do see a bit of strength on these 2 support lines of 55.87 and 56.58.
It is still choppy so if it will go down further (regardless of SPY and other market trends), we should see that sooner than later.
IF you’re green, exit for now and see if it will dip again below 56.58.
We want it under that line multiple times until it gets tired and drinks the kool-aid.
News out: thanks @Moses for bringing this to attention.
Bad press just keep piling on.
And the chart seem to be moving with them…
Whatever the case, I’ll keep watching the chart and update this thread how we can profit on this damned ticker either way.
Quick update on this.
The momentum has completely broken out of the 3Q pitchfork.
It’s now testing the previous support of 65, and I want to see if it will continue here and get overbought on the RSI.
While bad news keep piling on Activision Blizzard, the enthusiasm across the gaming industry paired with crypto NFTs is clearly the stronger institutional play atm.
So far, no specific bullish news coming from ATVI itself.
I’ll check the pattern again on the 2nd week of 2022.
If you’ve been playing long, congrats! There may yet be a continuation to this uptrend.
News updates Blizzard…
Youtube videos on the Blizzard drama…
Chart update…
Following the trend of 2022’s opening weak, we see 2 significant red candles on ATVI.
Yes, it looks like a hook again.
- This is a developing trend that you can try to ride.
- Support lines are marked in yellow (same lines as before).
- I’m thinking this downtrend will continue towards ER date on Feb–but keep your ears open for any changes.
Rumors…
- Blizzard and ATVI are looking for talents to replace ones that they have lost or losing.
- Overwatch may soon have a new beta, so that may be a possible bullish reversal for later (though shouldn’t be much).
This article is locked behind a paywall, so I have summarized while keeping paraphrasing to a minimum. Also, article is copy and pasted below for your own read. Still bearish on ATVI until they get a new CEO imo, but even then.
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Fired 3 dozen +, disciplined 40 since July due to the sexual harassment and other misconduct in recently
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Summary was set to be issued before holidays, Bobby decided not to due to not wanting to “ make the company’s workplace problems seem bigger than is already known”
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700 reports of employee concern over misconduct and other issues
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Spokesmen confirmed 37 people “exited” and 44 disciplined per company investigation. Disputes 700 figure. “our focus is making sure we have accurate data and analysis to share.”
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Calif.-based Activision, World of Warcraft/ Candy Crush under intensified scrutiny showing that Mr. Kotick, CEO for more than three decades didn’t inform the board of sexual misconduct allegations that he was aware of, including rape, against managers across the company.
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11/16 article details misconduct against CEO Bobby, including when an assistant complained in 2006 that he had threatened in a voice mail to have her killed.
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Board issued statement of support for Bobby
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ATVI facing regulatory probes into culture and handling of misconduct from, SEC, Calif. Department of fair employment and housing. Cooperating with SEC
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Settlement with Equal Employment opportunity commission. Waiting approval by judge.
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New policy changes, “a zero-tolerance harassment policy and an end to mandatory arbitration for harassment and discrimination claims.”
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COO Daniel commits to increasing women and non binary employees by 50%, 1/3 of total within 5 years.
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10,000 ATVI employees sign petition for CEO Bobby to resign.
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Lego pausing release of Overwatch product line, reviewing its partnership with ATVI due to “concerns about the progress being made to address continuing allegations regarding workplace culture”
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Activision’s share price is down nearly 30% since the first regulatory investigation was made public in late July, a period in which the Nasdaq Composite Index rose by a few percent. Concerns from investors of ATVI handling of the situation.
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Fidelity International called for an independent review by an outside lawfirm and should put CEO Bobby on administrative leave during this. Owns 0.6 %of ATVI, says would divest or “enlist the support of other shareholders” if concerns not met.
Activision Blizzard Inc. ATVI 1.90%▲ has fired or pushed out more than three dozen employees and disciplined about 40 others since July as part of efforts to address allegations of sexual harassment and other misconduct at the videogame giant, according to people familiar with the situation.
A summary of those personnel actions was scheduled to be released by Activision before the winter holidays, but Chief Executive Bobby Kotick held it back, telling some people it could make the company’s workplace problems seem bigger than is already known, the people familiar with the situation said.
Activision’s moves follow sustained pressure from shareholders, staff and business partners for more accountability over its handling of misconduct issues. The recently completed summary also says Activision had collected about 700 reports of employee concern over misconduct and other issues—in some cases separate reports about the same incidents—since July, when a California state agency filed a lawsuit against the company over harassment claims.
An Activision spokeswoman, Helaine Klasky, confirmed that 37 people have “exited” and 44 have been disciplined as part of the company’s investigation. She disputed the 700 figure. In a statement, she said employee comments included statements on social media, and the issues raised ranged from what she described as benign workplace concerns to “a small number” of potentially serious assertions, which the company has investigated. She said “the assertion regarding Mr. Kotick is untrue,” and “our focus is making sure we have accurate data and analysis to share.”
Santa Monica, Calif.-based Activision, the maker of popular game franchises including Candy Crush and World of Warcraft, has been under intensified scrutiny since a Wall Street Journal investigative article in November showing that Mr. Kotick, who has served as CEO for more than three decades, didn’t inform the board of sexual misconduct allegations that he was aware of, including rape, against managers across the company.
The Nov. 16 article, citing interviews and internal documents, also detailed misconduct allegations against Mr. Kotick, including when an assistant complained in 2006 that he had threatened in a voice mail to have her killed.
Activision has said the Journal’s reporting gave a misleading view of the company and its CEO. Mr. Kotick has said he was transparent with his board, which issued a statement supporting him. An Activision spokeswoman has said that he wouldn’t have been informed of every report of misconduct and that Mr. Kotick regrets the alleged incident with his assistant.
Activision also is facing regulatory probes into its culture and its handling of harassment allegations from the Securities and Exchange Commission and the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, which filed the July lawsuit against it in Los Angeles Superior Court. The company has disputed the California agency’s allegations and said it is cooperating with the SEC.
In September, Activision said it had agreed to a settlement with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over sexual-harrassment and other misconduct claims at the company. That agreement awaits approval by a judge.
After questions from the Journal in October, Activision announced a series of changes, including a zero-tolerance harassment policy and an end to mandatory arbitration for harassment and discrimination claims.
In December, Chief Operating Officer Daniel Alegre said in a staff letter that Activision was committed to increasing the share of women and nonbinary employees by 50% within the next five years to more than one third of the total, and to being more transparent about workplace issues. “One of the key areas of feedback has been the need to share more information openly as a company,” the letter said.
As described in the unreleased summary, company officials led by Frances Townsend, Activision’s chief compliance officer, have also worked to remove employees they have determined to be guilty of bad behavior, according to the people familiar with the situation.
The data compiled by Activision show it had so far reviewed more than 90% of the approximately 700 employee reports it had collected, according to the people. The Journal’s November article reported that Activision had received more than 500 reports of workplace misconduct and other issues since the California agency’s July lawsuit, a figure Ms. Klasky disputed in her Friday statement.
The summary doesn’t detail specific incidents. Among cases it tallies was one in which a pair of employees together solicited colleagues for inappropriate sexual behavior, the people said. Activision learned of the misconduct in October and fired the pair soon after, according to the people. The Activision spokeswoman confirmed the company terminated the two people “within weeks of the initial notice to us.”
In a letter to employees made public in October, Ms. Townsend said Activision had “exited” 20 employees and another 20 had faced disciplinary action. “We know there’s a desire to know about the outcome when misconduct is reported,” Ms. Townsend wrote. “Sometimes, there are privacy reasons we can’t share. But where we can, we will be sharing more information with you. We will also be providing you regular, aggregate data about investigative outcomes.”
Following the Journal article, nearly a fifth of Activision’s roughly 10,000 employees signed a petition calling for Mr. Kotick to resign. The company also has faced questions from major business partners. This month, toy company Lego A/S said it paused the planned release of a product line based on Activision’s Overwatch franchise and is reviewing its partnership with Activision due to “concerns about the progress being made to address continuing allegations regarding workplace culture.”
Ms. Klasky said Activision values Lego’s feedback and is talking with the company about changes it is making.
Activision’s share price is down nearly 30% since the first regulatory investigation was made public in late July, a period in which the Nasdaq Composite Index rose by a few percent. Investors have called and written to the company and its directors in recent weeks, expressing concern about Activision and its board’s handling of misconduct allegations, and about the independence of the board in general, according to people familiar with the communications and to correspondence viewed by the Journal.
Ms. Klasky said Activision is “routinely in discussion with our shareholders regarding inquiries they make.”
Fidelity International, a U.K.-based investor, sent a letter to Activision Chairman Brian Kelly calling for an independent review by an outside law firm and saying the board should consider placing Mr. Kotick on administrative leave while that happens.The letter, viewed by the Journal, is dated Nov. 30 and hasn’t been previously reported. It also asked for more board independence and pointed out that Mr. Kelly and lead independent director Robert Morgado both have served in their roles for more than 20 years.The letter warned that Fidelity International, which owns about 0.6% of Activision, according to FactSet, would divest shares or “enlist the support of other shareholders,” if its concerns weren’t appropriately addressed.
Messrs. Kelly and Morgado didn’t respond to requests for comment.
A Fidelity International spokeswoman declined to comment. Fidelity International operates separately from the similarly named U.S. investment firm. Activision’s board has stood by Mr. Kotick, with directors telling some investors that he is the right person to lead the company and pointing to the initiatives taken to change its culture, according to the people familiar with the investor communications.
In late November, the board announced the formation of a “workplace responsibility committee” made up of two independent directors to improve workplace culture and eliminate harassment and discrimination. Mr. Kotick told senior managers in the days after the Journal article that he would consider leavingActivision if he couldn’t quickly fix the culture problems, the Journal reported.
Ms. Klasky said Friday: “The Board’s support for Bobby is unchanged, and it is pleased with the commitment and leadership Bobby has demonstrated so far” in implementing changes.U.S. state officials who oversee investments also have pressured Activision over its workplace issues, including the New York state comptroller, which oversees the New York State Common Retirement Fund, owner of a 0.23% stake in the company, according to FactSet.
In a previously unreported late-November shareholder proposal to Activision, viewed by the Journal, the comptroller called for an annual transparency report covering the company’s efforts to prevent abuse, harassment and discrimination against employees.New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said in a statement to the Journal that its proposal to Activision “asks the company to give us answers, but we are keeping all other options open to address these troubling allegations.”It couldn’t be determined whether Activision or its directors have responded to letters from the New York state comptroller or Fidelity International.
Well ATVI found a solution to its problems - a buyer.
Obviously, this news dwarfs all the negativity that’s been spewing out lately…
Now don’t fall into fomo. The market is still shaky and MSFT itself is in a downtrend.
If you were holding long calls or leaps, consider trimming down on this news coming out today.
Regardless, this is the end of this thread.
Thanks again everyone for your contributions.
@Moses has been in contact ever since and kept monitoring ATVI. Props to you, bud!
Let’s hope the deal gets completed and Blizzard sees a grand new beginnning.