Investing.com — Ubisoft (EPA: ) shares fell 6% on Friday after a delay for its video game series, Assassin’s Creed Shadows and lower guidance for fiscal year 2025.

In an update, Ubisoft said it had appointed “leading advisors” to explore potential alternatives following a three-month review by its Executive Committee aimed at improving operational performance.

This move underscores an “aggressive stance” in addressing the company’s broader challenges, according to Stifel analysts.

The long-awaited Assassin’s Creed Shadows, which was first set to be released in November, has now been postponed for the third time, with a new launch date set for March 20, 2025.

This marks another setback for one of Ubisoft’s flagship franchises. Analysts expressed concern that repeated delays could weigh on the company’s momentum, despite management’s confidence in the title’s long-term potential.

In addition to the delay, Ubisoft lowered its net bookings guidance for FY2025 to €1.9 billion, representing an 18% year-on-year decrease.

This is up from an earlier forecast of €1.95 billion, with the company attributing the shortfall to disappointing holiday sales, particularly for Star Wars Outlaws, and the discontinuation of XDefiant.

The third quarter net bookings outlook was reduced by €300 million, marking a 52% year-on-year decline and the lowest quarterly figure since FY2006, Stifel said.

Despite this, Ubisoft’s updated guidance expects record net bookings of €958 million for the fourth quarter, surpassing last year’s peak of €873 million.

However, analysts question the feasibility of this target, pointing out that it depends a lot on Assassin’s Creed Shadows and new partnership opportunities.

Stifel further lowered its estimates for Ubisoft, projecting an FY25 loss of €0.44 per share on net bookings of €1.838 billion, down from a previously expected €0.38 loss of €1.907 billion.

Despite forecasting net bookings of €2.057 billion for FY26, analysts note uncertainty about the release of a new Far Cry game, which is important for meeting targets.