Sony Q4 Earnings: Financial Unit Spin-Off, Stock Buyback, Cautious Outlook Amid Tariffs

PlayStation parent Sony Group Corp. (NYSE: SONY) reported its fiscal fourth-quarter 2024 results connected Wednesday.

The institution reported a quarterly consolidated sales decline of 24% year-on-year to $17.24 cardinal (2.63 trillion Japanese yen), missing the analyst statement estimate of $20.40 billion.

EPS of 21 cents (32.63 yen) bushed the analyst statement estimate of 12 cents.

Also Read: What’s Pushing Sony To Consider A Semiconductor Spinoff?

Segments & Profits: Game & Network Services (G&NS) gross decreased 4.2% to 1.05 trillion yen, and operating income declined 12.5% to 92.7 cardinal yen.

Music gross roseate 9.5% to 470.7 cardinal yen, and operating income accrued by 17.4% to 83.6 cardinal yen.

Pictures gross accrued by 1.9% to 414.6 cardinal yen. Operating income improved by 74.3% to 53.5 cardinal yen.

Entertainment, Technology & Services (ET&S) gross declined by 9.1% to 484.1 cardinal yen, and operating income nonaccomplishment roseate to 20.4 cardinal yen from a nonaccomplishment of 6.4 cardinal yen a twelvemonth ago.

Imaging & Sensing Solutions gross (I&SS) rose 2.6% to 409 cardinal yen, and operating income remained level astatine 34.5 cardinal yen.

Financial Services gross nonaccomplishment stood astatine 172.4 cardinal yen. Operating income nonaccomplishment was 11.6 cardinal yen.

Consolidated operating income declined by 11.2% to 203.6 cardinal yen. The nett income grew 8.7% to 197.7 cardinal yen.

Sony sold 2.8 cardinal PS5 units successful the quarter, compared to 4.5 cardinal a twelvemonth agone and 9.5 cardinal successful the preceding quarter.

It held 2.98 trillion yen successful currency and equivalents arsenic of March end. The company’s committee of directors has authorized a caller banal buyback programme of up to 100 cardinal shares worthy a maximum of 250 cardinal yen. The play of repurchase is May 15, 2025 to May 14, 2026.

Sony plans to execute a partial spin-off of Sony Financial Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary that operates the Financial Services business, successful October 2025. Sony plans to classify the Financial Services concern arsenic a discontinued cognition from the archetypal 4th of 2025.

In April, Sony announced that it had raised the terms of its PlayStation 5 console by adjacent to 25% successful prime markets successful Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Australia, and New Zealand, citing precocious ostentation and fluctuating speech rates.

Outlook: Sony expects fiscal 2025 income of $81.82 cardinal oregon 11.7 trillion yen versus the 13.34 trillion yen analyst statement estimate. It expects operating income of 1.38 trillion yen (before tariff impact) and 1.28 trillion yen (after tariff impact).