Roblox Growth Slows, Stock Tumbles

Roblox showed substantial growth in the last three months of 2021, but missed estimates causing a precipitous drop in its stock price.

The gaming and virtual environment platform saw Q4 revenue escalate 83% year-over-year to $568.8 million. Full-year revenue for the company, which went public in March 2021, more than doubled to $1.9 billion.

• Daily active users reached 54.7 million in January, up 32% year-over-year.
• Bookings grew 20% in Q4 to $770.1 million but showed signs of slowing in January, growing 2% to 3% year-over-year from $220 million to $223 million.
• Those two figures missed estimates, and the company’s stock plummeted around 26% on Wednesday.

“Our absolute numbers have continued to grow,” said CEO David Baszucki, but “growth rates have declined as we are comparing, in some cases, to quarters last year in which certain key metrics doubled or even nearly tripled.” 

NFL Enters Metaverse

Major sports brands have turned to Roblox as they look for metaverse real estate.

Earlier this month, Roblox announced a partnership with the NFL on a team-building game called “NFL Tycoon,” which allows players to pick rosters, customize stadiums, and more.

The league was already enmeshed with Roblox after opening a virtual merchandise store within the platform in November 2021.

That same month, Nike launched “NIKELAND” within Roblox, where users can play games and browse products.