Lazard Asset Management LLC Acquires 485,260 Shares of Sony Group Co. (NYSE:SONY)

Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sony Group Co. (NYSE:SONY - Free Report) by 407.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 604,314 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 485,260 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Sony Group were worth $12,787,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SONY. LMR Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Sony Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,854,000. London Co. of Virginia boosted its stake in Sony Group by 400.0% in the fourth quarter. London Co. of Virginia now owns 22,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $466,000 after acquiring an additional 17,600 shares in the last quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Sony Group by 388.7% in the fourth quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC now owns 214,120 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,531,000 after acquiring an additional 170,310 shares in the last quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sony Group by 236.4% during the fourth quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 269,504 shares of the company's stock worth $5,703,000 after buying an additional 189,394 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Sony Group by 400.0% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 27,015 shares of the company's stock worth $572,000 after buying an additional 21,612 shares during the period. 14.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sony Group Stock Performance

Shares of Sony Group stock traded down $0.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $24.67. 4,068,258 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,248,035. The stock has a market cap of $149.18 billion, a PE ratio of 20.02, a P/E/G ratio of 9.95 and a beta of 0.97. The stock's fifty day moving average is $24.32 and its 200 day moving average is $22.35. Sony Group Co. has a 12 month low of $15.67 and a 12 month high of $26.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.66.

Sony Group (NYSE:SONY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 13th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $17.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2,995.71 billion. Sony Group had a net margin of 8.21% and a return on equity of 14.10%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sony Group Co. will post 1.23 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on SONY shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Sony Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Wolfe Research reissued a "peer perform" rating on shares of Sony Group in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Sony Group in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Sony Group in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $33.00 price target (up from $25.00) on shares of Sony Group in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sony Group presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $28.00.

Sony Group Profile

Sony Group Corporation designs, develops, produces, and sells electronic equipment, instruments, and devices for the consumer, professional, and industrial markets in Japan, the United States, Europe, China, the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company distributes software titles and add-on content through digital networks; network services related to game, video, and music content; and home gaming consoles, packaged and game software, and peripheral devices.