Sony returns to black, raises forecast
Helped by robust computer and TV sales, the electronics giant posts net profit of 25.7 billion yen versus a net loss a year ago, while sales inch up for the quarter.
Following a loss a year ago, Sony turned a profit in its first quarter thanks to strong sales of computers and TVs.
For the quarter ended June 30, the company took home a net profit of 25.7 billion yen ($294 million), compared with a loss of 37.1 billion yen in the prior year's quarter. Sales climbed 3.8 percent to 1.6 trillion yen.
The electronics giant attributed its rebound to profitability on strong sales across several of its business segments.
The Consumer, Professional, & Devices business showed a 7 percent gain in revenue to 889.5 billion yen for the quarter. The strong results came courtesy of higher unit sales for Sony's LCD TVs, which totaled 5.1 million units compared with 3.2 million in the prior year's first quarter.
The Networked Products & Services division, which includes PCs and game consoles, gave the company a 32.4 percent boost in quarterly revenue to 325.9 billion yen. For the period, Sony sold 1.9 million personal computers, up from 1.1 million in the year-ago quarter. Consumers picked up 2.4 million PlayStation 3 consoles, compared with 1.1 million last year. Gaming software also showed solid growth, as Sony sold 24.8 million titles for the PlayStation 3, up from 14.8 million a year ago.
The company's Pictures division was one of the few weak areas, as lower sales from movies and home entertainment contributed to a 22.3 percent decline in revenue.
Its return to the black prompted Sony to boost its forecast for the coming year.
The company now anticipates a profit of 60 billion yen, up from its prior estimate of 50 billion yen. It's also looking for operating earnings of 180 billion yen, higher than the previous forecast of 160 billion. Sony cautioned that it anticipates higher operating earnings even though it expects the yen to further appreciate against the euro, which would put a damper on overseas results. Sales for the full year are still expected to reach 7.6 trillion yen.