Sony Corporation $SONY Holdings Raised by Virtu Financial LLC

Virtu Financial LLC increased its stake in Sony Corporation (NYSE:SONY) by 168.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 56,486 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 35,443 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Sony were worth $1,446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. West Family Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Sony by 1.1% during the third quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $985,000 after buying an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sony by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after buying an additional 409 shares during the period. Glenmede Investment Management LP increased its position in shares of Sony by 1.0% in the third quarter. Glenmede Investment Management LP now owns 42,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,223,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Sony by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Mitchell & Pahl Private Wealth LLC now owns 40,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,033,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sony by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 18,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $456,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 14.05% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $22.00 price target (down from $30.00) on shares of Sony in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Sony in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Sony in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.00.

Insider Activity at Sony

In related news, Director Kenichiro Yoshida sold 400,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.61, for a total transaction of $9,044,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 661,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,959,115.15. The trade was a 37.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Tsuyoshi Kodera sold 51,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.54, for a total transaction of $1,047,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 27,553 shares in the company, valued at approximately $565,938.62. This represents a 64.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 468,500 shares of company stock valued at $10,487,215. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Sony Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE SONY opened at $20.34 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Sony Corporation has a one year low of $19.63 and a one year high of $30.34. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $21.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $22.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.14 billion, a PE ratio of -101.67, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.93.

Sony (NYSE:SONY) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $19.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.43 billion. Sony had a negative net margin of 2.61% and a positive return on equity of 12.20%. Sony’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $32.86 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Sony Corporation will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Sony News

Here are the key news stories impacting Sony this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Sony’s imaging division could benefit from its new LYTIA L910 sensor, which is designed to improve low-light photos and 4K capture on phones, supporting the company’s semiconductor and mobile camera business. Sony’s new LYTIA L910 camera sensor will turbocharge night shots and 4K capture on phones
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Sony plans to keep single-player first-party PlayStation games console-exclusive could strengthen the value of the PlayStation ecosystem and help protect software margins. Sony seems to confirm singleplayer first-party PlayStation games will remain console exclusive
• Positive Sentiment: Sony’s new PlayStation hardware patent, including a controller with changing button resistance, suggests continued innovation in gaming accessories and could help keep the platform differentiated. Sony has patented a PlayStation controller with buttons that change hardness during gameplay
• Neutral Sentiment: Sony also received attention for new audio and entertainment-related product/news flow, including luxury headphones and legacy game coverage, but these items are unlikely to move the stock much on their own. Sony drops new 1000X series luxury headphones explained
• Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary framed Sony’s PlayStation strategy as favorable for AI-related uses and less favorable for PC players, but the near-term financial impact is unclear. Sony’s new PlayStation strategy is bad news for PC players and good news for AI
• Negative Sentiment: Sentiment was weighed down by insider selling after Tsuyoshi Kodera sold 51,000 Sony shares for about $1.05 million, trimming his stake by roughly 65%, which investors often view as a cautious signal. SEC filing for insider sale

Sony Profile

Sony Group Corporation (NYSE: SONY) is a Japanese multinational conglomerate headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. Founded in 1946 by Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita, Sony has grown from an electronics maker into a diversified global company with operations spanning consumer electronics, entertainment, gaming, semiconductors and financial services. The company’s shares trade in Japan and its American Depositary Receipts trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SONY.

Sony’s primary businesses include Electronics Products & Solutions, which covers televisions, audio equipment, digital cameras and professional broadcast systems; Game & Network Services, anchored by the PlayStation platform, consoles, software and online services; Music and Pictures, through Sony Music Entertainment and Sony Pictures Entertainment, producing, distributing and licensing recorded music, film and television content; Imaging & Sensing Solutions, which develops CMOS image sensors and other semiconductor components; and Financial Services, offering life insurance, banking and other financial products in Japan.