Sony (NYSE:SONY) Hits New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Sony's share price reached a new 52-week high of $28.04 during trading, closing at $27.98, marking a significant increase from its previous close of $27.19.
• Analysts have recently downgraded Sony from a "buy" to a "hold" rating, with the stock currently having a consensus target price of $28.00.
• Institutional investors have shown considerable interest, with Aristotle Capital Management increasing its position by 393.7%, among other significant purchases by various hedge funds.

Sony Corporation (NYSE:SONY - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $28.04 and last traded at $27.98, with a volume of 3796254 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $27.19.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sony from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $28.00.

Sony Price Performance

The business's fifty day moving average price is $25.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market cap of $173.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.28 and a beta of 0.91.

Sony (NYSE:SONY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.06. Sony had a return on equity of 13.88% and a net margin of 9.14%. The company had revenue of $17.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $189.90 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sony Corporation will post 1.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Forum Financial Management LP increased its stake in shares of Sony by 536.0% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 115,250 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,439,000 after buying an additional 97,130 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its position in Sony by 435.8% during the 4th quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 582,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,323,000 after purchasing an additional 473,700 shares during the period. BSW Wealth Partners increased its position in Sony by 87.0% during the 1st quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 26,662 shares of the company's stock valued at $677,000 after purchasing an additional 12,404 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Sony by 386.6% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 917,856 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,424,000 after purchasing an additional 729,218 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in Sony by 30.6% during the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 481,381 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,222,000 after purchasing an additional 112,746 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.05% of the company's stock.

Sony Company 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.