Shares of the controversial video-game developer—best known for Grand Theft Auto—rally on news that it's considering a sale of the companyInvestors welcomed an announcement that Take-Two Interactive Software, the troubled publisher of the Grand Theft Auto video-game franchise, may put itself up for sale. The stock rallied $1.76, or 8.4%, after Take-Two (TTWO) announced it will delay its annual shareholder meeting by six days until Mar. 29 and that it's considering strategic options—including selling the company.
Shareholders reckon a different owner could better run the company, which has struggled to find a successful niche beyond Grand Theft Auto. Periods between new versions of the game tend to be lean, laying bare other pitfalls that include investigations into how the company handled stock options. Former Chief Executive Ryan Brant pleaded guilty to options-related charges and agreed to pay a $7.3 million fine. It doesn't help that Take-Two has had to restate earnings for periods going back as far as 1997 or that it ran afoul of the Entertainment Software Ratings Board and other authorities for embedding sex scenes in a version of its most popular game (see BusinessWeek.com, 6/28/06, "Take-Two Takes More Lumps").
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