Sony lifts outlook after Spider-Man and games fuel growth

Sony Group raised its profit outlook after a string of entertainment hits propelled better-than-expected results in the September quarter.

The Tokyo-based company now expects ¥1.87 trillion ($11.8 billion) in operating income for the year through March, raising its guidance by 15% on Thursday. Its operating profit in the July-September period was ¥622.3 billion, comfortably beating the average analyst expectation. Revenue was ¥3.43 trillion, also higher than estimates.

The latest entry in one of Sony’s key franchises, “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” was a major highlight in the quarter alongside Marvel’s Wolverine for the PlayStation 5. Michael Jackson’s music catalog drew strong streaming demand, helped by the film about the pop star. They showed Sony’s strategic pivot toward a more asset-light and content-focused approach paying off at a time of high component costs hampering hardware makers.

“The PS5 is already in the late stage of its life cycle, so Sony is in the fortunate position of not having to push hardware sales at any cost,” said Hideki Yasuda of Toyo Research and Advice. “Today’s results clearly show the payoff from Sony’s aggressive investment in content over the past several years, across movies, games and music. When Sony was more hardware-driven, its earnings were much more volatile.”

Sony’s shares rose 7% in Tokyo on Thursday before company released its results.

The company’s strong slate of content across genres sets it up to better navigate the challenging consumer environment. Sony sold 2.6 million units of its PlayStation 5 console in the September period, likely limited by its supply more than demand — the upcoming debut of Grand Theft Auto VI this month has sparked a jump in sales in the U.S., especially for the most capable PS5 Pro.

Wolverine was the best-selling game in the U.S. in September and delivered Sony’s biggest launch-month dollar sales since Helldivers II in February 2024, according to market researcher Circana.

Spider-Man has grossed about $2.5 billion in ticket sales worldwide, making it the third-highest grossing movie of all time, according to Sony. And streaming of Michael Jackson’s music, co-owned by Sony, surged to roughly four times the usual level following the release of the biopic “Michael.”

Sony now expects better earnings from its closely watched games division, as well as its music and pictures groups. The company’s image sensing and solutions unit is also set to improve on its profit number, according to Sony, even with smartphone shipments sinking dramatically this year.