GTAIV masking recurring problems at Take Two

In the wake of last night’s

financial report

from Rockstar-owning Take Two, Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter has stated that the upcoming financial uplift that will accompany the release of GTAIV is not enough to hide the problems faced by the publisher.

Take Two is pretty much the same company it was over the past three years, but has the good fortune to have GTAIV coming out next month,” he stated.

The game will mask recurring problems from the rest of the company’s operations, and calls into question the value of the rest of Take Two’s business.

We envision a very proud EA making a firm offer of $26 for Take Two shares. We expect that in order to save face, Take Two management will withdraw its demand that any discussions wait until after the launch of GTA IV, and we think that management will engage in discussions with EA.

We expect that all of this will transpire within the next few weeks, and are confident that an offer will be presented prior to Take-Two’s scheduled annual meeting on April 10.”

To see Pachter’s statement in full, click here.