Sony has fallen 7% after company forecasts more losses
Shares in Japanese electronics giant Sony have fallen by as much as 7% after the company forecast its second straight year of losses.
The stock sell-off came after Sony reported a loss of 125bn yen (£732m; $1.3bn) for the year to March due to costs from exiting the PC business.
But what surprised investors was the company’s announcement it also expected a loss of 50bn yen this fiscal year.
Sony executives are set to forfeit their bonuses due to the weak results.
The results put renewed pressure on chief executive Kazuo Hirai, who pledged two years ago to return its underperforming electronics business to profit.
The firm has been struggling to turn around its television unit, which has been losing money due to stiff competition from Asian rivals such as Samsung Electronics.
PC exit
As part of its restructuring, the firm exited the PC business by selling off its Vaio brand to Japan Industrial Partners earlier this year.
The company also announced 5,000 job cuts and has sold off other assets such as its US headquarters and its stake in Japanese satellite broadcaster Sky Perfect JSAT Holdings.
Sony chief financial officer Kenichiro Yoshida told an earnings briefing on Wednesday that it made sense to bow out of some businesses.
“In previous years the restructuring was mostly within business units and in manufacturing,” he said. “This time the difference is that we are quitting businesses entirely.”
Source: BBC
