Sony Raises Profit Outlook as Spider-Man Film and Games Lift Quarter
Sony lifted its full-year operating profit forecast to 1.87 trillion yen after a 45% jump in September-quarter profit led by movies and PlayStation.
Sony Group on Thursday raised its full-year operating profit forecast to 1.87 trillion yen, about $11.8 billion, after July-September operating profit rose 45% to 622.3 billion yen, well above the 505 billion yen average of 12 analysts polled by LSEG, Reuters and Bloomberg reported.
Quarter by the numbers
- Sales: 3.43 trillion yen, up 10%, ahead of estimates, according to Bloomberg and Investing.com.
- Net profit: 449.6 billion yen, up 44% from 311.4 billion yen, Investing.com reported.
- Game & Network Services operating profit: 220.1 billion yen, up 83%, Investing.com and Variety reported.
- Pictures operating profit: 92.6 billion yen, up from 13.9 billion yen; music operating profit rose 6% to 122.8 billion yen, according to Investing.com.
- PlayStation 5 units sold: 2.6 million, down from 4 million a year earlier, Reuters and Variety reported.
Sony also lifted its net profit outlook to 1.33 trillion yen, its annual sales forecast to 13 trillion yen from 12.5 trillion yen and its dividend forecast by 10 yen to 35 yen a share, Investing.com reported.
Spider-Man and Wolverine drive the gains
Sony Pictures Entertainment posted record September-quarter operating income of $581 million, with theatrical revenue of $1.28 billion led by “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” Variety reported. The film has grossed about $2.52 billion worldwide, making it the third-highest grossing movie in history, Variety said. Bloomberg reported that “Marvel’s Wolverine” was the best-selling game in the U.S. in September, citing market researcher Circana, and that streaming of Michael Jackson’s catalog, co-owned by Sony, surged after the biopic “Michael.”
Nintendo, reporting the same day, said operating profit fell 16% to 73.9 billion yen, below estimates, while keeping its forecast for 16.5 million Switch 2 units, Reuters reported.
Memory costs and the Grand Theft Auto VI launch
Sony’s games unit is expected to benefit from the Nov. 19 release of “Grand Theft Auto VI” but faces higher memory chip prices, Reuters reported. Bloomberg said PS5 sales were likely limited more by supply than by demand. Sony shares closed up 7% in Tokyo ahead of the report, according to Reuters.
Sources: Reuters via CNA, Bloomberg via Moneycontrol, Variety, Investing.com.
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