Fisher Asset Management LLC Purchases 4,337,062 Shares of Sony Corporation $SONY

Key Points

• Fisher Asset Management increased its Sony stake by 4.1% in Q4, buying 4.34 million more shares and lifting its holdings to 108.98 million shares worth about $2.79 billion.
• Insiders sold shares: Director Kenichiro Yoshida sold 400,000 shares and insider Tsuyoshi Kodera sold 17,500 shares, both at $22.61 per share, reducing their positions significantly.
• Sony’s latest quarter showed mixed results, with revenue up 8.3% year over year to $19.15 billion but earnings per share missing estimates; analysts currently rate the stock a Hold with an average price target of $22.00.

Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Sony Corporation (NYSE:SONY - Free Report) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,981,588 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,337,062 shares during the period. Sony comprises 0.9% of Fisher Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned approximately 1.80% of Sony worth $2,789,929,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. YANKCOM Partnership increased its holdings in Sony by 748.7% during the 4th quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 976 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sony by 304.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 1,010 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares in the last quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc increased its holdings in Sony by 81.7% during the 3rd quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 1,032 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Sony during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in Sony during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Institutional investors own 14.05% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kenichiro Yoshida sold 400,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.61, for a total value of $9,044,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 661,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,959,115.15. This trade represents a 37.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Tsuyoshi Kodera sold 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.61, for a total transaction of $395,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 27,553 shares of the company's stock, valued at $622,973.33. This trade represents a 38.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on SONY. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $22.00 target price (down from $30.00) on shares of Sony in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Sony in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Sony in a report on Wednesday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $22.00.

Key Headlines Impacting Sony

Here are the key news stories impacting Sony this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Sony’s WH-1000XX “The Collexion” headphones are being positively reviewed as a premium product, which supports the company’s consumer electronics brand. Sony WH-1000XX The Collexion review: Luxury epitomised
• Positive Sentiment: Sony announced a PlayStation State of Play showcase for June, which can help drive attention to upcoming games and hardware. Sony PlayStation State of Play June edition announced

Sony Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SONY opened at $22.09 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $131.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -110.43, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50-day moving average of $21.06 and a 200-day moving average of $23.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.94. Sony Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $19.63 and a fifty-two week high of $30.34.

Sony (NYSE:SONY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $19.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $32.86 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sony Corporation will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sony Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, March 30th will be paid a $0.0796 dividend. This represents a yield of 80.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 30th. Sony's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -55.00%.

Sony Company 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.

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