By Sony Group shares surged as much as 10.7% on Friday, driven by strong performance in its gaming division. The company sold 9.5 million PlayStation 5 units in the December quarter, up from 8.2 million in the same period last year, bringing lifetime sales of the PS5 to 74.9 million units.
Operating profit in Sony’s gaming business rose 37% in the third quarter, fueled by higher sales of network services, hardware, and third-party software. Monthly active users on PlayStation platforms also hit a record 129 million accounts in December, a 5% year-on-year increase.
Sony raised its revenue and profit forecast for the fiscal year ending March 2024, expecting annual operating profit of 1.34 trillion yen ($87.6 billion) and full-year sales of 13.2 trillion yen. The upward revision reflects strong performance across its gaming and music businesses.
Analysts remain optimistic about Sony’s future, particularly its gaming division. Damian Thong of Macquarie Capital noted that Sony’s stock has room to grow, citing strong upcoming game releases and cost-cutting measures.