whytestocks
5 years ago
News: $HEAR ROCCAT's New Kain Series Ultra-Responsive PC Gaming Mice Let Gamers Stay One Click Ahead Of The Competition - Available At Retail Starting Friday, September 27, 2019
SAN DIEGO , Sept. 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- ROCCAT, Turtle Beach 's (Nasdaq: HEAR) Hamburg, Germany -based PC accessories division today announced the highly anticipated Kain series PC gaming mice will be available at participating retailers across Europe and Asia tomorrow, Frid...
Read the whole news HEAR - ROCCAT's New Kain Series Ultra-Responsive PC Gaming Mice Let Gamers Stay One Click Ahead Of The Competition - Available At Retail Starting Friday, September 27, 2019
realfast95
5 years ago
Is It Finally Safe to Buy Turtle Beach Stock?
Insiders are scooping up shares, but the company still faces formidable headwinds.
Leo Sun
(TMFSunLion)
Jun 15, 2019 at 6:02PM
https://www.fool.com/investing/2019/06/15/is-it-finally-safe-to-buy-turtle-beach-stock.aspx
Turtle Beach (NASDAQ:HEAR) was one of the most volatile stocks of 2018. Shares of the gaming headset maker started the year at less than $2, surged to more than $30 by August, and were cut in half by the beginning of 2019. That pain continued as the stock stumbled nearly 30% in the first half of the year.
Turtle Beach's meteoric rise and fall were attributed to the explosive growth of "battle royale" games like PUBG and Fortnite, which let players communicate via headsets. Turtle Beach launched the first Xbox One-compatible wireless gaming headset just as the battle royale boom started, and it reaped massive rewards with triple-digit sales growth throughout most of 2018.
Turtle Beach headsets.
Image source: Turtle Beach.
But booms often end in busts, and Turtle Beach soon faced stiff competition from first-party and third-party headset makers, tough year-over-year comparisons, and the saturation of the battle royale market. Turtle Beach's revenue growth decelerated sharply, its earnings plunged, and investors flocked to the exits.
However, that sell-off reduced Turtle Beach's forward P/E ratio to 8, and it trades at about 0.5 times next year's sales. CEO Juergen Stark, CFO John Hanson, and directors Andrew Wolfe and Ronald Doornink also recently bought nearly $400,000 in shares. Those purchases are small relative to Turtle Beach's market value of about $150 million, but they indicate that the stock could finally be bottoming out. So is it finally safe to buy Turtle Beach's stock again?
What happened to Turtle Beach?
Turtle Beach's posted triple-digit sales growth in the first three quarters of 2018. That streak ended in the fourth quarter when its sales rose only 40%, and decelerated again in the first quarter with just 10% growth.
It expects its sales to decline 29%-34% in the second quarter and fall 14%-16% for the full year. Those estimates are disappointing, especially since they include revenue from its pending acquisition of PC accessory maker ROCCAT. Without the ROCCAT acquisition, which was arguably a desperate attempt to diversify itself away from gaming headsets and the battle royale market, its full-year revenue would decline about 23%.
Turtle Beach's gross margin also contracted 380 basis points annually to 33% during the first quarter due to higher promotional and marketing expenses, refurbishing costs, and higher sales of lower-margin devices. Its adjusted net income improved 10% to $2.2 million, but its EPS fell 19% due to a higher number of outstanding shares.
Turtle Beach expects to post a loss during the second quarter, and for its full-year EPS to decline 25%-32%. That dismal outlook doesn't include any gains from ROCCAT, which is only expected to boost its earnings growth starting in 2020.
A wireless Turtle Beach headset.
Image source: Turtle Beach.
The biggest problems
Turtle Beach's biggest challenges include competition, long headset upgrade cycles (which last up to two years), sluggish video game sales, and waning interest in battle royale games.
Sony (NYSE:SNE), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Logitech (NASDAQ:LOGI), Razer, and other companies all sell gaming headsets that are comparable to Turtle Beach's. Turtle Beach still controls about 40% of the console headset market, but that could be attributed to the first mover's advantage it gained in 2017.
Therefore Turtle Beach's share could slide as users finally upgrade their aging headsets. Some gamers might even postpone their upgrades until Microsoft and Sony launch their new consoles in 2020.
Interest in Fortnite peaked last March according to Google Trends, and the game's viewership numbers on Twitch are declining. Electronic Arts' (NASDAQ:EA) Apex Legends was considered a potential successor to Fortnite earlier this year, but interest in the game seemed to peak after a few short months. That's troubling, because Juergen Stark mentioned Apex as a potential catalyst several times during the first-quarter conference call.
Turtle Beach's plan for ROCCAT is also worrisome, because it expands its portfolio with PC keyboards and mice -- which are both heavily commoditized products. Stark noted that sales of ROCCAT keyboards were robust in Germany, but it's unclear how the brand will fare against Logitech and other major players in other markets.
Turtle Beach's stock is cheap for a reason
Turtle Beach's recent insider purchases sparked a rally in the stock, but I suspect that was sparked by shorts covering their positions -- about half of its shares were being shorted at the end of May. Therefore, investors shouldn't follow management's lead and buy shares down here. The stock is cheap for a reason, and the strongest headwinds won't dissipate anytime soon.
realfast95
5 years ago
3 Small Technology Stocks Insiders Are Buying
Jun. 17, 2019 10:29 AM ET|Includes: Turtle Beach Corporation (HEAR), MCHX, PSDO
https://seekingalpha.com/instablog/498952-bret-jensen/5316826-3-small-technology-stocks-insiders-buying
Coffee and chocolate—the inventor of mocha should be sainted.” ? Cherise Sinclair, Hour of the Lion
The market has done quite a bit better here in June compared with May, where the overall market fell just over six percent. Tensions with Iran and China still remain headwinds for equities. This has been counterbalanced nicely by increasing consensus the next move by the Federal Reserve will be an in interest rate cut, most likely at the September Fed meeting.
We are approximately a month away from the start of second quarter earnings season. So what are insiders buying now given the current uncertainty in the market? It appears there is some buying across the small technology sector. Here are three names that caught our eye.
Let's start with Turtle Beach (HEAR). This company is based just outside San Diego. Turtle Beach also develops various gaming headset solutions for various platforms, including video game and entertainment consoles, handheld consoles, personal computers, and mobile and tablet devices under the Turtle Beach brand. In addition, it provides directional audio with applications in digital signage and kiosks, consumer electronics, and hearing healthcare under the brand name of HyperSound.
Source: Investor Presentation
The stock is seeing its first insider buying since November of 2017. Two separate directors, the company's CFO and its CEO together bought nearly $500,000 in new shares in a half dozen transactions for June 7th to June 13th.
Despite delivering a solid Q1 earnings report on May 8th, the shares trade near 52 week lows and off some 60% from highs last year. Q2 guidance was lower than the consensus but the company did reaffirm 2019 full year guidance of between $240-248 million in revenue and and $0.90-1.00 in EPS. Gross margins did fall to 33% from 36.8% in Q1. Insiders seem to signaling the shares look undervalued at current trading levels.
whytestocks
6 years ago
News: $HEAR Turtle Beach Reveals New Products For E3 2019
SAN DIEGO , June 4, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Turtle Beach (Nasdaq: HEAR), the global leader in gaming headsets and audio accessories, today revealed new products the Company will be showing for the first time at next week's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2019. For PC gamers, Turtle Beac...
Read the whole news https://marketwirenews.com/news-releases/turtle-beach-reveals-new-products-for-e3-2019-8296374.html
realfast95
6 years ago
Turtle Beach (Nasdaq: HEAR), the global leader in gaming headsets and audio accessories, today revealed new products the Company will be showing for the first time at next week's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2019. For PC gamers, Turtle Beach's Hamburg, Germany-based ROCCAT team will be debuting its groundbreaking Kain series of PC gaming mice, which introduces an all-new design with an innovative click-mechanism that will be available in three models set to launch by the end of 2019. Additionally, Turtle Beach will showcase its latest standout gaming headset, the Recon Spark, which is a great entry-level wired gaming headset that dons a distinct white and lavender look and is perfect for gaming on any system.
"Our newly acquired ROCCAT team's dedication to design and innovation is clearly evident in the new Kain mouse line, which features innovative technology to make it the fastest, most responsive PC gaming mouse on the market," said Juergen Stark, CEO, Turtle Beach. "We're also excited to unveil the Recon Spark as the first of our products with a unique Spark color treatment. Gamers have an appetite for more color choices when it comes to their accessories, and we're already looking at giving future products a Spark treatment of their own."
René Korte, General Manager of PC Products at Turtle Beach added, "E3 2019 is the opportune time and platform for us to unveil our all-new Kain mouse series, which is the sum of an exceptional 12 years designing top-performing PC gaming mice and hearing our fans' desire for higher-end technology. Every single detail of this new mouse has been remastered, from its size and weight to its form, build, and coating, and our innovative new click-mechanism is designed to make gamers' actions more consistent, satisfying, and faster."
Kain Series PC Gaming Mice
Born from the vision of creating a PC gaming mouse with the best "click" and aimed to deliver maximum precision performance, the Kain series mice introduce the Titan Click – a new click-mechanism engineered to unlock accurate and responsive controls. Titan Click is a unison of innovative hardware design supported by software that combine to create a better, faster, more responsive, and great-feeling "click." This faster and more precise click comes from an exclusive variant of Omron switches and software that registers the click signal up to 16 milliseconds faster than any other mice, giving the Kain a speed advantage and letting players stay one click ahead of the competition.
PC gamers will have three models of the Kain mouse to choose from – both wired and wireless – each one offering the same superior precision in speed and control. Available in "Ash Black" and "Arctic White," the Kain family starts at a competitive MSRP of $49.99 for the Kain 100 AIMO, with the upgraded sensor variant Kain 120 AIMO available at $69.99. The Kain 100 AIMO and Kain 120 AIMO are planned to launch by September 2019 Additionally, the wireless Kain 200 AIMO will offer PC gamers the cable-free version of its newest technology at a MSRP of $99.99 and is planned to be available this fall.
On Tuesday, June 11, 2019, fans can get the full Kain series experience at www.roccat.org/KAIN as ROCCAT unveils additional details and begins taking pre-orders for its latest, groundbreaking PC gaming mouse series.
Recon Spark Multiplatform Gaming Headset
Debuting a fun white and lavender style based on input from gamers who wanted a new, distinct look, the Recon Spark delivers comfort-driven performance with great sound and crystal-clear chat through its high-quality 40mm speakers and high-sensitivity flip-to-mute mic. The Recon Spark's lightweight design, metal-reinforced headband, and glasses-friendly leatherette-wrapped memory foam ear cushions provide added durability and comfort. Additionally, the headset's standard 3.5mm connection makes it multiplatform compatible and ideal for use with Xbox One, PS4™ Pro & PS4™, Nintendo Switch™, PC gaming with the included PC splitter cable, and for mobile devices with a 3.5mm headset jack. The Recon Spark gaming headset will be available late July 2019 in limited quantities for a MSRP of $49.95, and is available for pre-order starting today at www.turtlebeach.com and at participating retailers.
realfast95
6 years ago
Turtle Beach Completes Acquisition of ROCCAT
PR Newswire
SAN DIEGO and HAMBURG, Germany, June 3, 2019
SAN DIEGO and HAMBURG, Germany, June 3, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Turtle Beach (Nasdaq: HEAR), the global leader in gaming headsets and audio accessories, today announced the Company has completed its acquisition of ROCCAT, a leading German PC peripherals business with a history of producing award-winning gaming keyboards, mice and other PC accessories.
Turtle Beach's acquisition of ROCCAT marks the beginning of the next phase in the Company's expansion into the massive $2.9 billion(1) market for PC gaming headsets, mice and keyboards, and is a key step in its goal of building a $100 million PC gaming accessories business in the coming years.
"With the acquisition of ROCCAT complete, we have a bigger and more powerful Turtle Beach than ever before, and we believe our combined product portfolio will be one of the strongest in the industry," said Juergen Stark, CEO, Turtle Beach Corporation. "The ROCCAT team and their products already have a great reputation among PC gamers, and their expertise will help accelerate our expansion into the roughly $1.6 billion(1) PC gaming headset market, and the roughly $1.3 billion(1) PC gaming keyboard and mice market. Our goal is to expand from being the leader in console gaming headsets into becoming a leading gaming accessory brand for all platforms."
René Korte, the new co-managing director of Turtle Beach's German subsidiary added, "It's a very exciting time for Turtle Beach and ROCCAT, as our newly combined portfolio now features nearly 50 current core product models across PC gaming mice and keyboards, PC gaming headsets, and console gaming headsets. And through our newly combined distribution channels across North America, Europe, and Asia, we'll be able to deliver our lineup of award-winning products to an even bigger audience of gamers around the world."
Turtle Beach acquired ROCCAT for $15.6 million in cash plus up to $3.3 million in earnout payments(2) . The Company expects revenues from ROCCAT products to be well over $30 million in 2020, and that the acquisition will be accretive to net income and EPS in 2020.
For more information on Turtle Beach's lineup of high-quality, German-engineered PC gaming accessories, visit https://roccat.org. For the latest information on Turtle Beach products, accessories, and stories, visit the Turtle Beach website at www.turtlebeach.com and the Turtle Beach Blog at https://blog.turtlebeach.com. Fans can also follow Turtle Beach on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
(1) Newzoo 2019 Peripheral Market Estimates.
(2) Dollar amounts are approximations converted at 1.11 given that the deal is in Euros. Net working capital adjustment is a current estimate which could change. Dollar value of earnouts (worth up to EUR3M) will reflect exchange rate at the time of payment.
realfast95
6 years ago
Perhaps the best part of the earnings conf call.
SG VTB probably dumped his remaining shares.
"While on the subject of the financial instrument obligation related to the Series B share retirement on March 30, 2019, we amended the warrant agreement in connection with the exchange of the Series B preferred stock. As a result, the warrants are no longer accounted for as a financial instrument obligation or reported as a liability that is mark-to-market each period, what changes in fair value reported in earnings.
The warrants were mark-to-market through March 30, 2019, at which time the warrants are accounted for as an equity instrument with the fair value on that date reclassified to additional paid in capital. As such we will no longer be exposed to the swings in net income arising from the former accounting treatment of the warrants."
realfast95
6 years ago
Sell-Side Likes Turtle Beach Earnings, Future In Battle Royale World
Dave Royse , Benzinga Staff Writer
May 09, 2019 10:41am
https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/19/05/13705270/sell-side-likes-turtle-beach-earnings-future-in-battle-royale-world#/.XNQ8G2rfgAM.twitter
Sell-Side Likes Turtle Beach Earnings, Future In Battle Royale World
Wall Street analysts continue to like gaming headset maker Turtle Beach Corp
HEAR 0.28%
, even as investors were selling the stock Thursday morning following a first-quarter revenue and earnings beat.
Analysts acknowledge an expected 2019 revenue drop after a big 2018, but say the large and growing market of gamers playing multiplayer “battle royale” games isn’t going away and will boost the company in the long run.
Turtle Beach reported earnings of 9 cents per share, ahead of the 6-cent Street estimate. Revenue in the quarter was up nearly 10 percent year-over-year to $44.8 million, beating estimates by nearly $3 million, and well ahead of management’s initial guidance.
'Extremely Encouraged'
D.A. Davidson analyst Tom Forte continues to see opportunities for full-year sales upside from more games being offered on a “freemium” basis, where players play for free, but can buy in-game upgrades. Forte also sees upside on a faster refresh cycle. Management looks good too, he said.
“We are extremely encouraged by the top-line and bottom-line beat,” Forte wrote in a note. “This further emphasizes our confidence in Turtle Beach’s management's ability to execute its strategy.”
Forte reiterated a Buy rating on Turtle Beach and increased the price target from $23 to $26.
Related Link: Turtle Beach Sells 30 Million Headsets, DA Davidson Says Guidance Remains 'Ultra Conservative'
Battle Royale More Than A Fad
Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter remains bullish because Turtle Beach headsets have for years been favored by gamers in multiplayer games, known as battle royale games. But now those multiplayer games are the rage, and that’s not changing soon.
“We continue to view Battle Royale as far more than a fad, and think it will last for many years,” Pachter wrote. “Turtle Beach is the favored brand among console gamers, and as we see an uptick in multiplayer and Battle Royale gaming, the company should continue to gain share.”
Pachter also likes Turtle Beach’s recent acquisition of German PC accessories company ROCCAT, which gives Turtle Beach the chance to expand its product reach and its presence internationally.
Pachter is keeping an Outperform rating on the stock, but lowered the price target from $22 to $20.
Price Action
Turtle Beach stock ran up after the earnings beat Wednesday but was giving some gains. Shares were down more than 6 percent to $10.13 at time of publication.
Photo courtesy of Turtle Beach.
Latest Ratings for HEAR
Date Firm Action From To
Mar 2019 Maintains Outperform Outperform
Aug 2018 Maintains Outperform Outperform
Aug 2018 Maintains Outperform Outperform