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Investing.com - Roblox (NYSE:RBLX) shares plunged Thursday after unveiling lower-than-anticipated daily active users in the fourth quarter, in a sign of a possible slowdown in gaming activity on the platform.
Roblox fell sharply in early U.S. trading on Thursday following the announcement, last trading down 13.5%
The firm, which relies heavily on user generated content on its free-to-play offerings, has been attempting to entice older gamers to its platform in a bid to expand its player base and spur consumer spending.
Daily active users, a key metric used to determine player engagement, rose by 19% versus the year-ago period in the fourth quarter to 85.3 million, although this was below estimates of 88.39 million, according to Bloomberg consensus forecasts.
Fourth-quarter bookings, which tally the sale of virtual currency, grew by 21% year-on-year to $1.36 billion in the quarter ended on December 31, compared with projections of $1.37 billion. Full-year bookings were $4.37 billion.
Meanwhile, quarterly revenue grew by 32% to $988.2 million, above expectations, while the net loss attributable to shareholders was $219.6 million.
The figures come after Roblox was the target of a short-seller report from Hindenburg Research last year which alleged that the group inflated its user and engagement figures and was an unsafe platform for children. Roblox has rejected the claims, saying Hindenburg had a "clear agenda."
Wolfe Research analyst Shweta Khajuria called the results "disappointing" given expectations were high.
(Scott Kanowsky contributed reporting.)