Insider Selling: Sony (NYSE:SONY) CEO Sells $4,729,500.00 in Stock

Sony Corporation (NYSE:SONY) CEO Hiroki Totoki sold 225,000 shares of Sony stock in a transaction on Friday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.02, for a total value of $4,729,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 173,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,641,715. This trade represents a 56.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Sony Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SONY opened at $20.94 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $21.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.99. The company has a market capitalization of $123.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -104.71, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Sony Corporation has a twelve month low of $19.32 and a twelve month high of $30.34.

Sony (NYSE:SONY) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $19.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.43 billion. Sony had a positive return on equity of 12.20% and a negative net margin of 2.61%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $32.86 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Sony Corporation will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on SONY. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Sony in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Sony in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $22.00 target price (down from $30.00) on shares of Sony in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sony has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.00.

Trending Headlines about Sony

Here are the key news stories impacting Sony this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Sony received conditional approval to launch a U.S.-based stablecoin trust bank, which could expand its financial-services footprint and create a new growth avenue.
• Positive Sentiment: Sony’s new RX10 V camera and other consumer-electronics launches show ongoing product innovation, supporting the company’s hardware brand.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street coverage remains mixed, with analysts generally holding a neutral stance and a consensus price target near current levels.
• Negative Sentiment: Sony’s reported shift away from physical PlayStation discs has triggered backlash from gamers and raised concern about the company’s gaming strategy and user goodwill. Sony plans major change to PlayStation games that has thousands concerned
• Negative Sentiment: Jermaine Dupri’s lawsuit over alleged unpaid royalties adds legal and financial uncertainty for Sony Music. Jermaine Dupri sues Sony Music for $18 million in unpaid royalties
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider selling, including by Sony’s CEO and other executives, is pressuring investor sentiment and may be viewed as a lack of confidence or profit-taking.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sony

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. YANKCOM Partnership raised its holdings in Sony by 748.7% in the 4th quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 976 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 861 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Sony during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Sony in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sony by 404.1% in the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 889 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Twin Tree Management LP boosted its stake in Sony by 4,218.5% in the fourth quarter. Twin Tree Management LP now owns 1,112 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 14.05% of the company’s stock.

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.