Sony’s begins turnaround plan and doubles annual net profit forecast to $403 million

It’s reported today that Sony doubled its annual net profit forecast for the past fiscal year.

[Snookies12]

Oh, very optimistic, that's good for them. Glad to see Sony getting back on the right track. I want to see Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft still making consoles a generation or two down the line. Gaming just wouldn't quite be the same if one of them dropped out.

[jcnba28]

Not really. Sony have been selling off their assets (buildings in America and Japan worth over $5 billion, closing down studios as well as selling off shares in the stock market) just to record a profit this year. If anything we should be worried about sony. Vita is already in a bad position and if the PS4 doesn't sell sony could be in big trouble.

For the people down voting me here is the proof:

http://www.electronista.com...

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1...

http://www.vgchartz.com/art...

http://www.bloomberg.com/ne...

[Silly gameAr]

According to a lot of financial analysts on gaming sites, Sony has been in big trouble for years, even when they do well.

[jukins]

yea because no business ever does that when its doing a "turnaround plan". If you werent so cynical and take into account sony beyond just playstation you would see sony is actually making worthwhile products its latest tablet is among the best out there and its new line of xperia phones are also highly rated not to mention some big things they're doing in the medical imaging field. Regardless this is a good thing for the electronics industry currently dominated by apple and samsung.

[Adva]

The things they have been selling off were simply adding expenses they did not need.
Only 1 or 2 big studios were closed and most people were shifted to other studios.

[mcstorm]

This is true but when things are going on a slide you need to do things like to that to make the books right again.

Nokia are in the middle of doing this with there business.

Sony are also in the middle of changing there image and product line and I think over the next 5 years Sony will start to make a lot of money again.

Ive always been a fan of there TV's and was a big fan of there phones back in the day of there cybershot phones.

Looking at the new Sony Products they are getting back to what they were 10 years or so ago. I really like my PSV but it really needs some more big names for it to stand out against the 3DS and the PS4 is looking a lot better than the PS3 which for me was a disappointment.

Sony have really started to hear what people want and expect from a Sony product and looking at the hardware that's coming up form them it is the start of giving us what we have been asking for.

[LightofDarkness]

The PS4 is boasting extremely healthy pre-orders at the moment, and is generating quite a buzz. It will sell, and it will likely sell faster at launch than the PS3 did.

Selling off their over-bloated assets isn't something to be worried about, it's actually a sign of smart asset management and instills confidence in investors and shareholders that they're committed to turning their fortunes around and "trimming the fat". Sony's attitude has been realistic and humble since the PS4 announcement, with a renewed vigor and focus that the company seemed to have lost for some time.

Sony are actually in a very good position right now, as they're about to turn their fortunes around to some degree. They may never reach the lofty heights they previously held, but they will certainly get a lot closer than they are now in the coming years.

[joeorc]

Look no one can say that Sony has not had some big trouble in the area of finance. but to say that you need to be worried about the viability of the company as a whole is kinda very short sighted, when the people in charge have started changing the structure of the entire company as a whole and the benefit's are all ready being seen. selling off building's and stock is not the sign that there is nothing Sony can do about the situation.

for example Sony TV section has lost money for 9 year's straight. we are talking Billion's, Sony's playstation 3 Lost Sony about a lil over 5 billion, not all the profit's that Sony has gained from the playstation Biz, but 5 billion worth is no Joke. but on the same token since it's inception the playstation biz has generated over 50 billion in revenue. Sony's TV part of their Biz is now no longer a pillar of the company going forward. but do you know what is ?

Playstation! and as a section of the company it's at PROFIT!

SONY HAS OVER 160,000 people that they employ, with more company asset's than even Microsoft, what's killing the profit's is the over head and the market competition on low pricing and the commodity pricing of electronics by companies such as Samsung AND Companies out of china in the TV industry, Sony''s now had 0ver 9 straight year's of loss'es do you really think that Sony's not going to cut production or people that work in that section further, now that TV's are no longer pillar and cut out playstation?

when Playstation is generating Profit's? and TV's are not?

[SilentNegotiator]

Stop using Sony selling their buildings as a negative, you troll. It's an ongoing trend for companies to sell buildings and lease them. It makes their assets more liquid. They never have to worry about getting stuck with a building (and thus taxes) if they decide to move their operations around.

That's how turnaround plans work; you get rid of bad, immovable expenses.

And newsflash! Stocks are an investment! Selling shares is not a weakness.

[grimmweisse]

I think everyone knows Sony was in trouble and still in murky water, that is WHY they sold what they needed to turn the company around, and it seems to be paying off.

Selling off their New York Headquarters was a smart move. They bought the building for $236 million and sold it for $1.1 billion.

Regardless of all the haters, Sony is changing their strategy, not onnly on the playstation front with PSN+ attracting lots of gamers, but in most of their markets and it seems to be working out for them. They will remain relevant for a long time.

[nukeitall]

@Silly gameAr:

"According to a lot of financial analysts on gaming sites, Sony has been in big trouble for years, even when they do well."

That is because Sony has been doing poorly all this time. There is a reason why the stock price is similat to what it was almost 20 years ago.

It is at one of it's lowest points and steadily been going down sans minor bumps here there only to go back down again.

I don't know what the restructuring efforts will yield, but past trend is downwards.

@LightofDarkness:

"The PS4 is boasting extremely healthy pre-orders at the moment, and is generating quite a buzz. It will sell, and it will likely sell faster at launch than the PS3 did."

That is up for debate and really is the long term strategy. Look at how the market imploded on PS Vita and Wii U.

Long term execution is what we are looking for.

"Selling off their over-bloated assets isn't something to be worried about, it's actually a sign of smart asset management and instills confidence in investors and shareholders that they're committed to turning their fortunes around and "trimming the fat"."

Problem is, that isn't fat, it is actually an asset and investment. Sony sold their building only to lease it back, now suddenly the asset has become an expense!

"Sony are actually in a very good position right now, as they're about to turn their fortunes around to some degree."

That might be true, but we wouldn't know for a while. Most of the things done doesn't really change the business so far.

Keep in mind that the gaming division is overall a small division relative to Sony entirely. Furthermore, it is being weighted down by other divisions.

@SilentNegotiator:

"Stop using Sony selling their buildings as a negative, you troll. It's an ongoing trend for companies to sell buildings and lease them. It makes their assets more liquid. They never have to worry about getting stuck with a building (and thus taxes) if they decide to move their operations around."

So what you are saying is, I don't have enough money so I'm going to sell my house, then pay a higher cost to rent it back so I have some money in the bank account for a rainy is a good thing?

Let's face it, if the house is a good investment, you don't sell it then lease it back. You do it, because your back is at the wall and you need to ensure you can get out safely.

Selling during a down market, where companies are scrambling for cash doesn't put you in a good negotiable position. Sony would likely have gotten way more for those buildings prior to the recession.

"That's how turnaround plans work; you get rid of bad, immovable expenses."

Yes, but Sony made the building a bigger expense, for some cash in the short term.

"And newsflash! Stocks are an investment! Selling shares is not a weakness."

No, but selling shares of good stocks because you lack funds are!

[dcbronco]

@jcnba28

This is a site full of sheep so you can expect disagrees no matter what you say if it's negative about one company or another. Especially Sony. Everything you said is true. But that applies to the year that just ended. This is a forecast for the coming fiscal year that started last quarter.

I believe the PS4 will finally move Sony back to steady profits as long as they don't over reach in other areas. Sub-$5000 4k TVs is a great start as long as they make moves themselves to provide content and not depend on others. I think they would have been better off pushing mid-range and low-range TVs where their name means so much more than companies like Westinghouse. They will have a tough time competing with Samsung on the high end.

I think they may have weathered the storm with the sell-offs and the PS4 will save them. I can't foresee a situation where it won't be successful. Not the complete domination that fanboys imagine, but more than enough sales to lead to a profit as long as they hold even in other divisions. But it will be in their best interest to pay down debt with any profits they get as opposed to throwing more at just flooding the market with things no one really wanted. And that applies to phones and exclusives.

Don't worry about the disagrees. Sony was and still has major trouble. They were on the verge of bankruptcy. Their stock rating is junk bond status and I don't think anyone list it as a "buy". But again, I think they have weathered that storm and should be about to turn things around. But it will be a while before I would consider them stable again. They still have a lot to potentially drag them down.

[imsocool1234]

Your Nintendo fanboyism is showing lol. You mad Nintendo is going to tank and go out of business?

[DragonKnight]

@nukeitall: I bet MS is doing fabulously right?

[GraveLord]

They're only closing down studios who have underperformed. You know that's what any good business would do.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

Couldn't hear you over the doom and gloom.

[NeverEnding1989]

Oh and it's Dragonknight who becomes the first victim to mention Microsoft's financials in a SONY article. One of the best ways to find the biggest fanboys.

And for the record if SONY's $400 million profit is a good thing, then Microsoft must be doing very well with $21 BILLION in profits.

ITT: I'm glad to see SONY starting to improve. For awhile there I was concerned we wouldn't even see a PS4.

[UnholyLight]

It's no use, unless you actually understand Business or are taking a degree in business (me), everyone will continue to disagree.

I don't think Sony is in huge trouble, but they definitely aren't the company that all these gamers think they are. You can tell them something and they still won't believe you. Analysts and investors are right to worry a bit about investing in Sony because it obviously is a bit of an inconsistant company as of late.

But I expect things to begin to turn around very shortly. This is especially likely if they can get their whole TV business figured out. Kaz Hirai is the man to lead Sony into better days IMO

[The Great Melon]

Looking at the articles you posted it seems Sony is actually relying more on their gaming assets. The Bloomberg article mentions this in the article.

"Chief Executive Officer Kazuo Hirai is cutting 10,000 jobs and selling assets as he focuses on mobile devices, games and digital imaging to turn around Sony..."

It helps when you have gaming blood (Kazuo Hirai) at the top. Now if we are talking about Sony in general I really don't know the forecast, but gaming alone still remains one of their stronger areas unlike TVs.

[DragonKnight]

@NeverEnding1Bubble: Yeah, you need to learn what context is. I know how MS is doing, I don't care how MS is doing. That's not why I brought them up. You're probably the only person who didn't know what I was talking about when I posted that comment. Seriously. Think before you type. I know you want to get your trolling quota for the day but you're only doing yourself a disservice.

[stragomccloud]

Still, I think PS4 will be great turnaround for Sony!

[k2d]

Ahahaha. Listen to you laying it down for us.

No offence, but its time for you to pipe down.

[GameNameFame]

that you cant sell assets to record it as profit on the books..

It just gets moved from x dollar asset to
x dollar in cash section on their books.

Broke your fanboy bubble

[kreate]

I am all in favor of the ps3 and the ps4 as some of u n4g veterans would know over the 360.

But I dont think sony does well outside of gaming.

Outside of gaming, other companies outshines sony by far.

I personally dont like anything they make from phones to tvs.

But I love me ps3 and ps4.

[TyBREAKR]

Accounting b******! Love it. He is right though. Its not a change in profit unless from sales. They debited cash and credited plant assets.

[TronEOL]

This doesn't in any way mean Sony is going under, or that we should be worried. We should instead be applauding them for "de-bloating" their company.

Whomever is in charge should be given a pat on the back for doing this as well.

I hope everyone realizes most of these companies were made as huge as they are now during really good, or at least decent, economic times where high priced items weren't all that big of a deal if bought every now and again.

Now we see so many companies falling, or going out of business, because they refuse to realize the answer is downsizing and trying to rebuild in this new era. The small few that are still alive now are here because they were always ahead of the curve and are now mostly living on name.

Which Sony was doing, and now they're clearly trying to push new things and bring their name back. Especially when you look at the PS4.

[pixelsword]

jcnba28

I guess the words "turnaround plan" didn't register.

[Kevin ButIer]

Kaz Hirai will be sharing a place in the big CEOs of our gen along with Carlos Ghosn

[kenshiro100]

What does anything you've written here have to do with the article? Oh, absolutely nothing at all. You're just another troll trying to downplay anything that's positive regarding Sony.

[cliffyboy21]

that might be true but there gaming department is the biggest seller they wouldnt really have to worry about the gaming devision im sure if sony was in that bad of trouble they would of held off on the ps4

[DA_SHREDDER]

Something is going on in the industry, and I think I'm starting to figure it out.

Oh yeah, i got an xperia phone, the older one with the game pad, i wish i held off for the new one.

[WeAreLegion]

I bought the Xperia Play at launch. Ugh... Amazing for Minecraft, but that's about it. I have an Xperia TL now. Best phone I've ever had. It even crushes the Galaxy S III. In fact, even the Galaxy S 4 is missing a couple features that this has. The Xperia Z is basically this phone, but waterproof. Lol. I'm definitely getting the Xperia Z tablet, however.

[joeorc]

I don't know what the restructuring efforts will yield, but past trend is downwards. "

No, that is if there have been no benefit's in result's of that restructure.

It seem's many have not been paying very close attention, by your comment's you are one of them.

Because so far since the cut ,Sony has had a cut in Sale Quarter Loss'es to each of the part's of the companies section's for heavy loss'es TV's being one of them. with further cut's in stages that kaz has maintained to further reduce the Quarter by Quarter Loss'es. Also the sale's of the building's and stocks a majority of these cash bank deposit's are to pay back outstanding debt's they are in the processing of paying off Debt's.

Sony is the 3rd Largest Smartphone manuf. world wide! it goes Samsung, Apple and than Sony.

they are selling over 10 million xperia smartphones a sales Quarter!

despite all this , Sony's restructure is going to take year's, to gather hard benefit's but on the same token they are not in a freaking downward spiral also. so many keep saying that but there is no evidence to that fact that downward spiral effect's do not get their quarter by quarter loss'es cut in half and net an increase in profit build up's or repaying debt's , or the ability to make slow stable cut's instead of drastic all at once workforce cuts that hit your stock value more than it already does. Downward Spiral only means death. and Sony's 17.00+ billion market is a far cry from the 100 billion market cap they were at quite a while ago, but it sure as hell is more than the 14 billion market cap that Nintendo is worth!

And Nintendo does not have anywhere near the level of overhead that Sony does. why do you think Sony is cutting further into TV's section and now has classed the TV section as no longer a Pillar of Sony's company. 9 straight year's of loss'es more the number of loss'es of the playstation division has lost over the PS3 as upwards of over 3 time's as much, which has had over it's 14+ year's 50 billion in revenue for the entire Playstation division as a whole for 14 year's+ worth on the market, and people think that's a small part of a company?

really? 50 billion is small?

[LightofDarkness]

@Legion: What?

The Xperia TL loses in just about every benchmark against the SIII, which even has about 40% more battery life (the TL's greatest drawback). It also isn't as feature rich as the SIII nor does it have an innovative design like the HTC One.

It might be a nice phone, but it's not in any way "best in class".

[Awesome_Gamer]

Good to hear Sony is doing well...

[fermcr]

The problem with this, is that Sony had to sell a few buildings and real estate to achieve those forecasts.

Hope Sony have good sales with the PS4... as Microsoft and Nintendo with their consoles. The more the competition, better for the consumer.

[fermcr]

well, since i got all the disagrees...

http://www.tmcnet.com/topic...

[just_jeff]

Actually what Sony is doing is restructuring. They've basically looked at themselves and realized their very inefficient and wasting money in areas they don't have to.

Kaz came in and is basically re-focusing the company as a whole. Sure you can take that and run with it and call it a negative now, but lets save the judgement for when/If this plan doesn't work.

Let them be happy for Sony posting a much high "profit" than they first thought, they're trying hard to turn things around. What do you care? They're not clients looking to invest in Sony and you're not the Financial adviser taking care of them.

[Anon1974]

When there's bad news for Sony, it spells doom. When it's good news for Sony, it's also really bad news and spells doom. If there's no news for Sony, what bad news are they hiding? Doom!

Over the years on this site, it never ceases to amaze me just how much certain people want to see Sony fail, and how hard they try to spin anything to do with the company in a negative light. I just can't begin to wrap my head around what could possibly compel people to act like this in forum full of strangers. What do they possibly get out of it? How badly do you crave attention that this, in your head, is an acceptable means of socializing?

Anyway...this news is no surprise to those who've actually been following Sony's restructuring efforts over the years. Analysts were saying months ago that the FX markets were finally stabilizing and the change in the yen would positively impact Sony overall. I imagine we can expect a Forbes "contributor" article to show up shortly trying to convince us that this is really bad news somehow.

[MonkeyNinja]

+ Well Said

Don't forget about Nintendo's Doom&Gloom articles.

[Anon1974]

Ugh. There's been a tonne of those as well, despite the fact that the Wii-U has been selling about on par with what the PS3 and 360 managed in their first 2 quarters. It's not like the Wii-U doesn't have it's work cut out for it going up against two brand new consoles coming up, but you just can't seem to convince some that not every piece of news spells doom. It's not quite the onslaught of doom that we've been hearing parroted over and over again for Sony every since the PS3 launched, but Nintendo certainly has seen a lot of this suddenly from the game media and posters alike.

[TheLyonKing]

That will most likely be from Ps4 coming out rather than any other products sony is displaying.

Really glad that sony are turning around the books

[Minato-Namikaze]

Well their xperia phones seems to be doing quite well, and the xperia tablet seems to generating buzz.

[R_aVe_N]

I have an Xperia phone and it is the best phone I have ever had. I don't seem to have those annoying problems I had with Iphones and Samsaung.

[Conzul]

Yeah those look like the sh!t.
Fingers crossed that T-Mo picks up Xperia Z for the US. I hear they've been looking at it.

[Good_Guy_Jamal]

Yes that makes sense, SONY has doubled profit forecasts for the PAST fiscal year based on the success of a console thats releasing in the current fiscal year.
That's what you're saying here. Did you read the article or just the headline? Could have at least read the description.
. . .and 12 people agreed with you. Wow.

It’s reported today that Sony doubled its annual net profit forecast for the past fiscal year to $403 millions. This is mostly due to a weak yen, it has lost around a fifth against the dollar since November, but also sales of Sony assets and smart business decisions. Sony will announce their results next month according to France 24.

Please read that and tell me again how this has anything to do with the PS4. If anything, they would have made more profit were it not for the PS4 because all the R&D money is only gonna pay off once it releases.
Again, why do you have 12 agrees?? Do people just see ps4 and positive and decide thats good enough?

[blastcorp64]

This site never fails to amuse me. I'll be honest, I only come to this site to witness the delusional commenters. It's like finding a movie humerous for its bad acting. I mean, can you really be offended by your disagrees?

[kenshiro100]

Why do people like you try to downplay good news and scream doom and gloom from the rooftops?

No one is implying that Sony didn't have their troubles but this is good news. Are you allergic to good news or something?

[blastcorp64]

Uhhh, you're misinformed. This forecast has nothing to do with the forthcoming fiscal year.

[andreasx]

i'm glad to see that Sony is doing so well, so far they have ticked all the right boxes when it comes to marketing for the PS4

[fsfsxii]

Kaz is doing a great job.

[BlaqMagiq24]

With Kaz at the helm and PS4 on the horizon, they're looking to aim big and I hope they see a huge payoff. Good luck to Sony.

[MasterCornholio]

I know its just a forecast but I hope they exceed it by q large margin. Kaz is doing a great job with the company ever since he became CEO. Now its Iwatas turn to bow out that way a new CEO can turn around Nintendo.

Motorola RAZR i

[seanpitt23]

Get in Sony one of the best companies out there finally getting back on track I think personally there mobile phones are great with the new experia z out it can only get better.
The ps4 just around the corner and I know its going to sell like hot cakes because people have been waiting along time for next generation consoles. it's going to be a very profitable couple of years for Sony and they deserve it

[Williamson]

I know from the business side sony hasnt been making as much profit as they would like, but most of the things the have done have been good for us gamers....except the vita memory cards prices.

[AkatsukiPain]

They will definitely keep going up from here on out. With a ps3 & ps vita price cut soon & the ps4 around the corner I feel sony is about to be back where they were in the ps1, ps2 era. Good job kaz.

Shinra Tensei

[gamedebater]

ps4 is going to be awesome.
but the vita needs some jrpgs, since thats why gamers buy handhelds to buy rpgs.... the DS is too kiddie.

[TemplarDante]

I got an Xperia Arc and from what Ive read on the Xperia Z, its going to be my next phone!
Kaz certainly is the new blood they've needed at Sonys helm.

[abzdine]

Kaz is in da building!
This is good for Sony and good for gaming

[Good_Guy_Jamal]

Actually Kaz sold da building

[lilbroRx]

Now that one was good. I must admit.

It actually made me laugh.

[DiRtY]

And they only had to sell 2 buildings and their investment in DeNA to get there...

[XabiDaChosenOne]

lol you sound so bitter.

[BigStef71]

In Kaz We Trust

[Tultras]

Amazing how many financial analysts we have on PG.

[MrDead]

Oops! Judging by some of the comments I think this is the child chat room, I shall leave before I get arrested.

[MariaHelFutura]

Some of your comments are priceless. This would be one of them. +1 Well said.

[Bathyj]

Its Kaztastic!

[GodsPerfectK7ng]

Sounds like someone will be getting a bonus on there pay grade!!!!

[pabadamus1]

Historically Japanese culture has been very insular and closed to external influences. This is both good and bad. The Japanese have been able to maintain a very unique and progressive culture that is not just another iteration of western ideals. Issues arise, in business at least, when companies such as Sony ignore international trends and demands. Japan's nationalism is commendable but it can be detrimental if companies do not cater to their international customers. I believe Sony will improve solely due to the efforts of Kaz Hirai. He brings a larger and more diverse view of international markets and consumer demands. His sensibilities override much of the Japanese closed market views that permeate the culture of Japan's largest corporations. I don't see why they can't pull themselves out of the red and become fiscally healthy again.

[Apollosupreme]

Guys, it's just a forecast; a prediction.

[NBT91]

Shush don't tell them that! You will ruin the delusion.

[Conzul]

Time to buy me some Sony stock!

[neoMAXMLC]

Nothing worse than a bunch of bitter 360 fanboys being cynical over positive Sony news... especially those who pretend they aren't fanboys. Looking at you, Good_guy_jamal.

Whatever Sony is doing is obviously working for them. They are bringing out some killer products and the buzz around the PS4 is huge for a generation where consoles will supposedly die off soon.

[Godz Kastro]

Hope they turn it around...

[MonkeyNinja]

Reading the comments on that site, along with most other sites, makes me realize that N4G isn't that bad after all.

All N4G has are fanboys and the occasional troll, but other sites have people that are completely and hopelessly out of the loop when it comes to technology and games. And other sites' comments are much more immature and/or arrogant.

I appreciate you, N4G.

[Muffins1223]

So that explains the 5 percent jump they had on there stock today

[animegamingnerd]

good to see both nintendo and sony both profited

[GamerzElite]

Sony is world leader in TV & Film equipment making. They owned a Television Network in Asian Continent named SET (Sony Entertainment Network). Sony is official broadcaster of IPL cricket series from past 6 years and they are making billions with their sports cum movie channel.

[Condemnedman]

Who owns a sony z ? Ive yet to meet a person who owns one . I had a xperia s but the battery was shite, have they sorted that on the z ?

[SDF Repellent]

Wooh...$400 million profit..MS makes that in a day. It is going to be a long turnaround for Sony, I am afraid.

[mixelon]

Everyone is using "there" instead of "their" Aaaaaaggghh! ;)

Anyway, this is great news, but I'm a bit apprehensive. The industry seems to be overestimating things a lot lately, probably to encourage investors etc. I hope it doesn't end up like DS3 and Tomb Raider sales where by anyone's reasonable standards they did great, but the money men set unlikely targets, causing a knock on panic effect and even more doom and gloom posts.

Wouldn't it be great if the ps4 starts off as a Wii or iPhone-like sales success? I think Sony deserve one this time.

[Ozmoses]

Sony is more the Playstation... It always has been and always will be...

Playstation in a way is it's own community or entity of Sony... Don't confuse the other Sony departments for Playstation

But, regardlass I'm glad Sony as a whole is turning things around.