Sony Reports Strong Quarterly Profit as Gaming Revenues Surge

13.02.2025

Sony Group shares surged after the company reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter profits, driven in part by the success of its gaming business. This positive performance comes just ahead of the holiday shopping season, boosting investor confidence. On Monday morning in Tokyo, Sony’s shares were up 6.3% at 2,982.0 yen, having climbed as much as 9.4% earlier in the session.

For the quarter ending September 30, Sony posted a 69% increase in net profit to 338.50 billion yen ($2.22 billion), surpassing analyst expectations of 254.0 billion yen, according to Visible Alpha. The company’s gaming division saw operating profit more than double to 138.85 billion yen, fueled by strong software and network service sales, as well as improved hardware profitability, despite a decline in PlayStation 5 console sales. Sony sold 3.8 million PS5 units during the quarter, down from 4.9 million a year earlier.

Ahead of the holiday season, Sony recently launched an upgraded version of the PlayStation 5. The new PS5 Pro features faster rendering, enhanced details, and other improvements over the original model, which debuted in 2020. This release aims to attract gamers looking for enhanced performance and could help drive sales in the coming months.

Beyond gaming, Sony’s image-sensor and financial divisions also contributed to its strong quarterly results. The company’s diversified business model continues to support growth, helping offset fluctuations in hardware sales.

Sony raised its revenue forecast for the fiscal year ending March 2025, expecting higher game-related revenue, though it maintained its net profit growth projection at 1.0%, reaching 980.00 billion yen. The company now anticipates a 2.4% decline in total revenue to 12.710 trillion yen, an improvement from the previously expected 3.2% drop.