Sony Raises FY2026 Net Profit Forecast to ¥1.33 Trillion as Films and PlayStation Lift Earnings

Entertainment drives a record September quarter

Sony Group raised its fiscal 2026 net profit forecast to ¥1.33 trillion after reporting record second quarter sales and operating income on November 5, 2026. A blockbuster Spider-Man film, stronger PlayStation software and services, and growing music revenue helped offset falling console shipments and weaker demand for some electronics.

Revenue for the three months ended September 30 reached ¥3.4294 trillion, up ¥321.5 billion, or about 10%, from a year earlier. Operating income rose ¥193.4 billion, or 45%, to ¥622.3 billion. Net income increased 44% to ¥449.6 billion, while income before tax reached ¥623.2 billion.

The games and film divisions together contributed ¥178.4 billion of the increase in operating income, about 92% of the group increase of ¥193.4 billion. Their contribution shows how strongly this quarter depended on entertainment, even as Sony's sensor, music and electronics businesses also increased operating profit.

Chief Financial Officer Lin Tao said operating income exceeded ¥1 trillion in the first six months of a fiscal year for the first time. She connected that performance to years of spending on entertainment businesses and the ability to use successful characters and stories across several products.

"We've been investing in entertainment for a long time, and we are finally producing big hits every year," Tao said.

What changed in the annual forecast?

Sony now expects revenue of ¥13 trillion for the year ending March 2027, compared with its previous forecast of ¥12.5 trillion. Its operating income forecast rose to ¥1.87 trillion from ¥1.72 trillion, and its net income forecast increased to ¥1.33 trillion from ¥1.21 trillion.

The net profit revision amounts to ¥120 billion, or about 10%, above the previous forecast. The operating income revision is ¥150 billion, or about 9%. Sony also forecasts income before tax of ¥1.86 trillion.

Operating income measures earnings from running the business before items such as income taxes. Sony's operating margin, the share of revenue left as operating profit, rose to 18.1% from 13.8%. In simple terms, the company earned about ¥18 in operating profit from every ¥100 of sales, compared with roughly ¥14 a year earlier.

Currency movements also helped. Group revenue grew about 4% when exchange rate effects were excluded, compared with the reported increase of about 10%. A weaker yen can increase the yen value of sales earned overseas.

Sony's net income of ¥449.6 billion exceeded the ¥349 billion estimate compiled by Visible Alpha by ¥100.6 billion, or about 29%. Tokyo shares closed 7.07% higher at ¥4,211 after the results.

Spider-Man transforms the film result

Sony's Pictures division reported revenue of ¥513.7 billion, up ¥167.7 billion, and operating income of ¥92.6 billion, up ¥78.7 billion. Both the scale of the increase and the annual forecast revision were driven by Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

The film opened on July 31 and generated approximately $2.52 billion worldwide by the end of September, including $952 million in North America and about $1.55 billion internationally. Sony also cited benefits elsewhere in the group from sales of related games and streaming of the soundtrack.

Worldwide box office represents ticket sales at cinemas. Sony's Pictures accounts record revenue from its wider film business, which includes theatrical distribution, television production, licensing and other activities. The division's theatrical revenue reached $1.28 billion for the quarter, roughly 11 times the level a year earlier.

Tom Rothman, chairman and chief executive of Sony Pictures Entertainment's Motion Picture Group, described the film's appeal at the Lumière Summit in September:

It's very human. It's very emotional. It's got plenty of whiz-bang, but that's not what the secret is. The secret is it's a relatable story that almost everybody has related to.

Other studio activities weakened. Television production revenue fell 31% to $483 million, film licensing revenue declined to $186 million from $237 million, and home entertainment revenue fell to $98 million from $126 million.

Sony raised its annual Pictures operating income forecast to ¥200 billion from ¥150 billion, an increase of one third. Its revenue forecast rose to ¥1.76 trillion.

PlayStation earns more as console shipments fall

Game & Network Services revenue rose 9% to ¥1.2085 trillion, while operating income increased 83% to a record for the second quarter of ¥220.1 billion. Higher game sales and network services revenue helped the division grow despite lower hardware shipments.

Sony shipped 2.6 million PlayStation 5 consoles during the quarter, bringing lifetime shipments to retailers to 97.9 million. Most quarterly comparisons put shipments a year earlier at 4 million, although a conflicting comparison lists 1.5 million. Using the 4 million figure, shipments fell 35%.

PlayStation's active audience moved in the opposite direction. Monthly active accounts reached 127 million in September, up from 119 million a year earlier and 125 million in the previous quarter. Total playing time increased 4% from a year earlier.

Network Services revenue rose to ¥218.3 billion from ¥182.7 billion. Digital Software and Add-on Content revenue increased to ¥643.9 billion from ¥568.1 billion. Those activities allow Sony to earn money from people who already own a console, through game purchases, additional content and services.

The profit comparison also benefited from ¥49.8 billion of charges recorded a year earlier: ¥31.5 billion in write downs connected with Bungie assets and ¥18.3 billion in development cost corrections. Those earlier expenses account for about half of the division's ¥99.7 billion increase in operating income.

Game releases and memory costs shape the outlook

Marvel's Wolverine sold 2.4 million copies between its September 15 launch and November 4. Sony raised the games division's annual revenue forecast by ¥290 billion to ¥4.83 trillion and its operating income forecast by ¥40 billion to ¥700 billion.

The company expects stronger sales of games made by other publishers, with Grand Theft Auto VI among the anticipated releases. The forecast also reflects lower expected sales of Sony's own games after God of War: Laufey moved to the first quarter of the next fiscal year.

Memory chips remain a cost pressure. Sony expects PS5 hardware profitability this fiscal year to stay around the previous year's level despite higher memory prices. It has also agreed with suppliers on the memory quantities needed for planned hardware sales next fiscal year.

Tao, discussing the following year's hardware costs, warned:

memory prices will be one of the challenges the management will face

Sony said development of its next generation platform was progressing on schedule, with related investment expected to have a larger financial effect in the second half of the current fiscal year.

Music combines new releases with older hits

Sony's Music division increased revenue by ¥56 billion to ¥598.4 billion. Operating income rose ¥7.4 billion to ¥122.8 billion, a record for the second quarter. Streaming, live events and merchandise contributed to growth.

Recorded music streaming revenue reached ¥242.2 billion, compared with ¥208.6 billion a year earlier. Music publishing streaming revenue rose to ¥74.4 billion from ¥65.1 billion. Publishing covers rights in the underlying songs, while recorded music covers the performances people listen to.

New releases and established recordings both contributed. Ateez's Golden Hour: Part.5 led Sony Music Entertainment's projects by quarterly revenue, ahead of Michael Jackson's Thriller and Ella Langley's Dandelion. Sony said Langley's Choosin' Texas had exceeded 1.8 billion streams.

Sony also described renewed demand for Jackson's music following a biographical film. His recordings generated 3 billion Spotify streams over nine months, with Generation Z listeners accounting for approximately half the increase in streams.

The company has been buying more music rights. In May, Sony agreed to acquire Recognition Music Group's catalog of more than 45,000 songs through its venture with Singapore investment company GIC. Sony now forecasts annual Music revenue of ¥2.3 trillion and operating income of ¥445 billion.

Anime connects Sony's entertainment businesses

Sony plans to place a Crunchyroll hub on the PS5 home screen in spring 2027. The move would give the anime streaming service a direct presence where PlayStation users already choose their games and entertainment.

Crunchyroll Storyworks is another part of the expansion. Sony described plans to work with Japanese creators on international anime adaptations and live action versions of Japanese intellectual property. Intellectual property means rights in creations such as characters, stories, songs and game worlds.

Tao said the company was reaching a stage where it could use those rights across several businesses:

We are now entering a stage where we can expect to roll out IP (intellectual property) across multiple fronts.

Anime results still varied between periods. Sales in Music's Visual Media & Platform business fell to ¥90.4 billion from ¥105.9 billion. The previous year's quarter had benefited from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle.

Sensors gain from currency despite weaker demand

Imaging & Sensing Solutions, which makes camera sensors used in smartphones and other devices, reported revenue of ¥577.6 billion, down ¥37 billion, or 6%. Operating income nevertheless rose ¥16.4 billion, or 12%, to ¥154.6 billion.

Exchange rate movements added ¥40.9 billion to revenue and ¥25.9 billion to operating income. The currency benefit to profit was larger than the division's total profit increase, showing how much it helped compensate for weaker sales.

Management said the smartphone market contracted by about 20% from a year earlier, with greater weakness in cheaper and middle range devices than in expensive models. Changes to some customers' launch schedules also shifted sensor shipments between the first and second halves. Sony expects those timing changes to leave annual shipment quantities unchanged.

The Kumamoto earthquake on July 28 disrupted production. Average monthly wafer input, the number of silicon discs entering a main manufacturing stage, fell to 147,000 from 155,000 a year earlier. Installed capacity averaged about 160,000 wafers a month.

Sony said the Kumamoto Technology Center had returned to its operating level before the earthquake. Its annual forecast includes approximately ¥16 billion in losses from damaged inventory, equipment repairs and production stoppages.

The division's annual operating income forecast rose ¥30 billion to ¥450 billion, while its revenue forecast increased ¥10 billion to ¥2.12 trillion. Sony plans ¥220 billion of investment in image sensors, compared with ¥246.7 billion the previous year. It also plans a smartphone sensor venture with TSMC involving combined investment of $4.7 billion.

Electronics, mobility and security require attention

Entertainment, Technology & Services revenue declined ¥7.9 billion to ¥567.8 billion. Operating income increased ¥3.2 billion to ¥64.1 billion, partly because of refunds of US tariffs.

Sony said imaging products faced a difficult market, particularly in China. It sought to limit the effect of lower unit sales and higher memory costs by introducing products, increasing market share and selling a greater proportion of more expensive models. True RGB BRAVIA televisions were selling well worldwide, according to the company.

Preparations for Sony's venture with TCL were progressing toward full operations in April 2027, including work on staffing structures and operations. Sony also recorded approximately ¥30 billion in additional losses related to downsizing Sony Honda Mobility. Tao said recognition of those downsizing losses was largely complete.

Cybersecurity remains another concern. Tao said Sony was investigating cyberattack incidents, had taken countermeasures and would prioritize defenses across the company, including the use of artificial intelligence. The company did not specify the full extent of the incidents.

Cash generation and the dates ahead

Sony raised its annual operating cash flow forecast by ¥100 billion to ¥1.6 trillion. Operating cash flow is the cash generated by day to day business, helping fund investment, acquisitions and shareholder payments.

During the first six months, operating cash flow from continuing operations increased to ¥655.4 billion from ¥492.3 billion. Investment cash outflows also increased, reaching ¥607.8 billion compared with ¥377.7 billion, as acquisition payments and spending on assets rose.

The planned annual dividend is ¥35 per share, ¥10 above the previous year's amount. Sony's next stages combine scheduled entertainment releases, platform changes and the start of new business operations:

• July 28, 2026: An earthquake disrupted operations at the Kumamoto Technology Center.
• July 31, 2026: Spider-Man: Brand New Day opened in cinemas.
• September 15, 2026: Marvel's Wolverine launched.
• November 5, 2026: Sony announced its second quarter results and raised its annual forecasts.
• Spring 2027: Sony plans to introduce a Crunchyroll hub on the PS5 home screen.
• April 2027: The TCL venture is scheduled to begin full operations, while God of War: Laufey is expected in the quarter beginning that month.

Key Points

• Sony raised its fiscal 2026 net income forecast to ¥1.33 trillion and operating income forecast to ¥1.87 trillion.
• Quarterly operating income rose 45% to ¥622.3 billion on revenue of ¥3.4294 trillion.
• Games and Pictures supplied about 92% of the increase in group operating income.
• PlayStation active accounts reached 127 million as software and services supported growth.
• Spider-Man: Brand New Day generated about $2.52 billion worldwide by the end of September.
• Sensor profit increased despite lower revenue, helped by favorable exchange rates.
• Sony expects annual operating cash flow of ¥1.6 trillion and plans a dividend of ¥35 per share.