NetEase (NTES) stock is up Friday after the Marvel Rivals developer introduced new changes to Season 1 of the popular free-to-play hero shooter game. The mid-season update went live this morning and includes the introduction of The Thing and the Human Torch, two new playable characters. These additions round out the Fantastic Four superhero team following the addition of Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman earlier in the season.
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The addition of new characters to Marvel Rivals is a boon to NTES stock due to how the company generates revenue from the game. Since Marvel Rivals is free-to-play, NetEase makes money by selling cosmetics. That includes skins for characters, emotes, sprays, and other digital content. Introducing new characters increases the amount of these in the game, providing the video game developer with another source of sales.
On that same note, the Season 1 Part 2 update brings a new map to Marvel Rivals. This Convergence map is Empire of Eternal Night: Central Park and it also progresses the game’s story, which has characters facing off against Dracula in New York City. Yet again, this plays into NetEase’s strategy of retaining players with new content while drawing in new ones to drive cosmetic and battle pass sales.
NTES Stock Movement on Friday
NTES stock is up 2.05% as investors and gamers are excited about new content being added to Marvel Rivals. This jump also comes alongside updated analyst coverage of NetEase following its earnings report yesterday, which saw it blow past Wall Street’s earnings per share estimates.
Is NTES Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, the analysts’ consensus rating for NetEase is Strong Buy based on seven Buy and one Hold ratings over the last three months. With that comes an average price target of $116.63, a high of $122, and a low of $108. This represents a potential 12.62% upside for NTES stock. More analyst ratings and price target updates may follow its latest earnings report.
