Sony Corporation $SONY Shares Acquired by Rathbones Group PLC

Key Points

• Rathbones Group PLC increased its Sony stake by 31% in the fourth quarter, ending with 196,275 shares valued at about $5.0 million. Several other hedge funds also raised or initiated positions, though institutional ownership remains relatively modest at 14.05%.
• Recent headlines around Sony were mostly negative: executives Kenichiro Yoshida and Tsuyoshi Kodera sold significant shares, analysts maintained an average Hold rating, and Sony is facing a lawsuit tied to alleged tariff-related price hikes.
• Sony’s latest earnings missed EPS expectations, even though revenue came in above forecasts and rose 8.3% year over year. The stock was down 1.2% in Friday trading, and analysts currently see a consensus price target of $22.00.

Rathbones Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Sony Corporation (NYSE:SONY - Free Report) by 31.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 196,275 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 46,452 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC's holdings in Sony were worth $5,025,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. YANKCOM Partnership boosted its holdings in Sony by 748.7% in the fourth quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 976 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sony by 304.0% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 1,010 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 760 shares during the period. Binnacle Investments Inc raised its stake in shares of Sony by 81.7% during the third quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 1,032 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sony during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sony during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.05% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Sony

Here are the key news stories impacting Sony this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Director Kenichiro Yoshida sold 400,000 shares of Sony stock, and insider Tsuyoshi Kodera also sold shares. Large insider sales can hurt sentiment because they may suggest management sees limited near-term upside. Article Title Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts kept Sony at an average “Hold” rating, which reinforces a cautious outlook and limits enthusiasm for a major re-rating in the stock. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: One report said Sony is being sued over alleged tariff-related price hikes, adding legal and reputational overhang around the gaming business. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: A separate article suggested Sony’s Days of Play promotion may not include PS5 discounts, which could disappoint gamers and soften the near-term sales buzz around PlayStation hardware. Article Title

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 stock was 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. The trade was a 37.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Tsuyoshi Kodera sold 17,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.61, for a total value of $395,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 27,553 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $622,973.33. This trade represents a 38.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Sony Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE SONY opened at $22.55 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $134.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -112.72, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.73. Sony Corporation has a 52 week low of $19.63 and a 52 week high of $30.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Sony (NYSE:SONY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.13). The firm 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%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $32.86 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Sony Corporation will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sony Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Sony from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating and set a $22.00 price objective (down from $30.00) on shares of Sony in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Sony in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $22.00.

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.

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