Sony’s (SONY) Market Perform Rating Reiterated at Sanford C. Bernstein

Sanford C. Bernstein restated their market perform rating on shares of Sony (NYSE:SONY) in a report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Sanford C. Bernstein currently has a $22.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $30.00.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Sony from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sony to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered Sony from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Nomura upgraded Sony from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.00.

Sony Stock Performance

Shares of SONY opened at $20.63 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -103.12, a P/E/G ratio of 7.24 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.22. Sony has a 1 year low of $20.26 and a 1 year high of $30.34. The company’s fifty day moving average is $22.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.13.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sony

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SONY. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in Sony by 2.8% during the third quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 13,670 shares of the company’s stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. West Family Investments Inc. increased its holdings in Sony by 1.1% in the third quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 34,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $985,000 after buying an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Sony by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 30,408 shares of the company’s stock valued at $875,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the period. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sony by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Investment Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Sony by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Investment Management LP now owns 42,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,223,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 14.05% of the company’s stock.

Key Sony News

Here are the key news stories impacting Sony this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Sony Pictures is expanding its family IP slate via a Pop Mart partnership to develop a Labubu feature film, adding content that can boost studio revenue and franchise value. Pop Mart and Sony team up for Labubu film
• Positive Sentiment: Early marketing momentum for Sony’s Spider-Man franchise (new trailer coverage) supports box-office and licensing expectations for Sony Pictures and its Marvel partnerships. Spider-Man: Brand New Day trailer
• Positive Sentiment: PlayStation platform improvements — PS5 Pro AI upscaling rolling out to more titles and a 1080p high-quality update for PlayStation Portal — bolster the gaming ecosystem, which supports software sales and services revenue. PS5 Pro AI upscaling coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Sony is developing tools to detect and limit AI-generated copyright infringing content, which could protect IP value and reduce legal/rights risk for its creative businesses. Sony developing AI copyright tool
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say Sony plans to retire the “PlayStation Network” brand this year — a rebranding move that’s operational/marketing-focused and unlikely to materially change fundamentals in the near term. Sony Will Drop All PlayStation Network Branding This Year
• Neutral Sentiment: Product-level updates (new camera adapter unlocking AF modes for manual lenses) are positive for niche camera customers but represent limited near-term revenue impact relative to Sony’s gaming and studio businesses. PDMOVIE Smart Fusion adapter
• Negative Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Sony from “outperform” to “market perform” and cut its price target (from $30 to $22), which increases near-term analyst-driven selling pressure and tempers upside expectations. Bernstein downgrade / price target cut
• Negative Sentiment: Early major price cuts on new WF-1000XM6 earbuds during large retail promotions may signal soft demand or margin pressure for audio hardware in the short term. WF-1000XM6 price drop coverage

About Sony

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.