Sony Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, reported a 34% increase in its quarterly profits propelled by robust sales in movies, video games, and music. For the quarter ending in May 2024, the company achieved a profit of 189 billion yen ($1.2 billion), up from 141 billion yen in the previous year, with sales rising by 14% to reach 3.48 trillion yen ($22 billion).
Despite the quarterly success, Sony's annual profit for the fiscal year through March saw a decline of 3%, totaling 970 billion yen ($6.2 billion), down from over 1 trillion yen the previous year. However, annual sales reported a significant increase of 19%, amounting to 13 trillion yen ($83 billion).
Sony’s financial services segment impacted the overall operating profit, leading to a decision to partially spin off this segment next year. Hiroki Totoki, Sony's CFO and president, expressed the company's strategy shift towards focusing on more profitable entertainment operations.
The company showed particular strength in its entertainment division, with successful film releases like “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” which grossed $691 million worldwide, and notable music releases by artists such as SZA and Travis Scott. Additionally, Sony’s PlayStation game division also performed well with 20.8 million PlayStation 5 units sold during the fiscal year.
However, Sony is cautious about the next fiscal year, projecting a decrease in profit to 925 billion yen ($5.9 billion) and a slight drop in sales to 12.3 trillion yen ($79 billion). This outlook comes amidst a corporate restructuring announced in February, which included a reduction of about 900 jobs in its PlayStation division.