SoftBank Group (OTCMKTS:SFTBY) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

SoftBank Group Corp. Unsponsored ADR (OTCMKTS:SFTBY) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $18.53, but opened at $19.77. SoftBank Group shares last traded at $19.46, with a volume of 812,103 shares.

The technology company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.86. SoftBank Group had a return on equity of 23.66% and a net margin of 48.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SFTBY. Zacks Research raised shares of SoftBank Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. TD Cowen raised shares of SoftBank Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of SoftBank Group in a report on Monday, March 9th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of SoftBank Group from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

SoftBank Group Trading Up 4.7%

The stock has a market cap of $221.62 billion, a PE ratio of 8.95 and a beta of 1.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $13.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.83.

SoftBank Group Company Profile

SoftBank Group Corp is a Tokyo‐based multinational conglomerate holding company with a primary focus on technology, telecommunications and investment management. Founded in 1981 by Masayoshi Son, the company initially operated as a software distributor before expanding into mobile communications and internet services. Over the years, SoftBank has built a diversified portfolio that spans telecom operators, semiconductor design, cloud computing, and emerging technology ventures.

A key pillar of SoftBank’s strategy is its investment arm, the SoftBank Vision Fund, which targets high‐growth technology companies around the globe.