The turnaround continues for Majesco Entertainment, as the publisher today reported first-quarter sales of $18.7 million (up 29 percent) for the period ended January 31, 2008. Moreover, the company saw a net profit of $2.7 million. For the same period one year ago Majesco posted $14.5 million in sales and a net loss of $900,000.

Gross margin for Majesco in Q1 also increased to 40.2 percent (up from 31.1 percent last year), "reflecting the higher margins attributable to Wii games and Cooking Mama 2, which was at a premium price point."

In fact, the Cooking Mama games continue to be a real boon for Majesco. The publisher attributed most of its revenue increase to the cooking titles, including the introduction of Cooking Mama 2: Dinner with Friends for the DS. Handhelds in general have become hugely important for Majesco, as 77 percent of net sales came from the company's handheld titles (almost all on DS). 22 percent of sales were from consoles, with Nintendo's Wii accounting for most of that revenue at 20 percent.

"We delivered an exceptional quarter across all financial metrics as we continued to execute our plan. Our performance was driven by our focus on the casual gaming market and the steps we have taken to improve our financial position and operating model over the past year," said Jesse Sutton, Chief Executive Officer of Majesco Entertainment. "Further, we benefited from a strong domestic sales performance, driven by sales of our Cooking Mama games, which delivered a revenue increase of 47 percent versus the same period last year."

He added, "Our strategy is working and we are executing on our business plan. We expect to continue to benefit from the improvements we have made in our operations throughout the rest of the year. Our new studio is open and is developing its first title, Our House for DS, which complements the previously announced Wii version and helps build our portfolio of intellectual property. We are focused on expanding the number of titles we publish and strengthening our retail distribution. Our management team remains committed to a disciplined financial approach, improving our profitability and driving increased value for shareholders over the long- term."

As of January 31, 2008, Majesco has cash and cash equivalents of $8.2 million.

For the full 2008 fiscal year, the company reiterated its outlook for revenue to be in the range of $53 million to $58 million. Majesco expects 59 percent of its net revenue to be from handheld titles, with virtually all titles for DS, and 41 percent from console titles, with 40 percent from Wii titles.

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