Huuuge Games (HUGP) posted a nearly imperceptible revenue miss for the second quarter of 2026, then turned to one of the most aggressive capital return programs in recent gaming industry history — a $120 million share buyback that would retire over 16 million shares.
Revenue came in at $50.9 million in Q2, missing the company's own $51 million forecast by just $0.06 million, or about 0.12%. The top line fell 13.4% year-over-year and 9.9% from the prior quarter, consistent with a social casino market shrinking at low single-digit rates annually. Gross profit was $41.1 million, down 7% year-over-year and 9.7% quarter-over-quarter.
The company delivered stronger margins than revenues. Adjusted EBITDA in Q2 reached $19.8 million on a 39% margin, bringing first-half adjusted EBITDA to $44.1 million on a 41% margin. Operating result stood at $16.7 million and net income at $14.1 million. Earnings per share were reported at $1.56.
Operating cash flow totaled $20.8 million in the quarter and $40 million for the first half. Huuuge Games ended Q2 with $137 million in cash, up $36.4 million from year-end 2025, plus approximately $14 million in other short-term financial assets, nearly half of them highly liquid. Total debt remains zero.
CEO Wojciech Wronowski said the strong balance sheet supports both the buyback and the company's iGaming ambitions simultaneously. "We are not choosing between the two," he said. CFO Maciej Hebda added that in a declining market, share reduction is where per-share growth comes from.
The $120 million buyback represents 164% of the free cash flow generated in 2025 ($73.3 million) and aims to reduce the share count from 44.7 million, down from 84.2 million at the end of 2023. Huuuge Games said the repurchase could improve per-share metrics by almost 60%. Total capital returned over the past five years approaches half a billion dollars.
On product metrics, core franchise daily active users fell 14.5% year-over-year and 7.7% quarter-over-quarter, though average revenue per DAU rose 1.5% and average revenue per paying user increased 2.3%. Direct-to-consumer revenue reached 42.5% of quarterly sales in Q2 and climbed to roughly 45% in July.
The company outlined a product catalyst roadmap for the second half of the year: a significant economy improvement update on September 7, a major new meta-layer product update on September 14, and a larger seasonal product update in November. CEO Wronowski cited the Monday after the latest release as "our strongest revenue day in several years." He estimated H1 2027 as the likely window for a potential iGaming launch.
Full-year 2026 guidance expects revenue to decline slightly year-over-year, matching the broader social casino market trend. Adjusted EBITDA is also expected to edge down, with margins remaining at least flat compared to 2025. Marketing spend is guided to stay in the mid-teens as a percentage of revenue, with H2 spending slightly lower than H1. Operating costs excluding user acquisition are expected to decline modestly year-over-year following two years of restructuring.
Shares last traded at $23.15, up $0.05 from the prior close of $23.10, within a 52-week range of $20.55 to $25.95.
