Key Takeaways
1. Ubisoft postponed its earnings call for fiscal year 2025-2026 just 15 minutes before it was set to start, prompting a trading halt on Euronext Paris.
2. The trading suspension began on November 14, 2025, and will last until the release of the first-half results, aiming to reduce speculation and market volatility.
3. Analysts and investors view this incident as unusual and concerning, especially given Ubisoft’s recent project cancellations, including major titles in the Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell franchises.
4. CFO Frederick Duguet communicated internally that extra time was needed to finalize earnings results, but legal regulations prevented further information from being shared at that time.
5. Speculation about potential financial issues or an acquisition of Ubisoft has arisen, fueled by concerns over the performance of recent game releases and leadership changes within the company.
Ubisoft Entertainment SA has unexpectedly postponed its earnings call for the fiscal year 2025-2026, causing alarm and rumors among shareholders and industry investors. The earnings conference, which was scheduled for the first half of the fiscal year, was delayed just 15 minutes before it was supposed to start, making this situation even more unusual compared to other postponed calls.
Sudden Trading Halt
The company made this announcement through a surprise press release, catching both analysts and shareholders off guard, leading to a halt in trading of its shares on Euronext Paris. This trading suspension began at the market’s opening on November 14 and is expected to last “until the publication of its first-half 2025-2026 results in the coming days.”
The official statement reported by Reuters is as follows:
Ubisoft announces the postponement of the release of its results for the first half of fiscal year 2025-2026.
Ubisoft has requested Euronext to halt trading of its shares (FR0000054470) and its bonds (FR001400DV38, FR001400MA32, and FR0014000O87) from the market opening on November 14, 2025, until the publication of its first-half 2025-2026 results in the coming days. Ubisoft will inform the market of the date on which trading will restart.
Concerns Among Investors
Industry analysts and investors have labeled this incident as one of Ubisoft’s “strangest delays yet,” raising worries about possible turmoil within the publisher. This year has been particularly challenging for Ubisoft, with several project cancellations, including a planned post-American Civil War Assassin’s Creed, an ambitious sci-fi title known as Project Scout due to high development costs, and a new mainline Splinter Cell game that has reportedly been in development for over ten years.
In light of the halted trading and the postponed earnings call, Ubisoft’s CFO Frederick Duguet communicated with staff through an internal email, explaining that the suspension of the stock was to “limit unnecessary speculation and market volatility.”
An Internal Message to Employees
According to Insider Gaming, the email stated:
Hello everyone, I wanted to let you know that we are taking extra time to finalize the closing of the semester, and as a result, we will publish our first-half earnings results in the coming days instead of tonight.
Due to legal regulations, we cannot share more information with you at this time. To limit unnecessary speculation and market volatility during this short delay, we have asked Euronext to suspend trading of our stock until the results are announced.
We know this is likely to raise questions and drive media coverage. I encourage you all to listen to the conference call, which will be available via the Investor section of our site – just after the results are released, so that you have a more detailed view of our earnings. Thank you for understanding.
Analyst Daniel Ahmad from Niko Partners commented that this situation might suggest an acquisition or some financial issues at the publisher. However, as of November 15, Ubisoft has not provided any additional information, leaving both investors and industry observers in uncertainty.
This delay has come at a moment when there are whispers that Assassin’s Creed: Shadows may not have performed as well as expected in sales, coupled with the removal of one of the longest-serving directors of the Assassin’s Creed series in a notably abrupt manner. As rumors about a potential acquisition of the struggling publisher and game developer continue to swirl, the situation remains tense.
Source:
Link