By Sam Nussey
TOKYO, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Sony on Thursday reported a 45% rise in second-quarter operating profit, beating market estimates, while Nintendo reported an earnings slide that missed market expectations.
The divergent fortunes of the two companies come as technology firms around the world grapple with a shortage of memory chips due to the AI boom, affecting a wide range of products including smartphones and computers.
Sony's operating profit came in at 622.3 billion yen ($3.95 billion), better than an average estimate of 505 billion yen from 12 analysts polled by LSEG.
Contributors to the stronger performance, which led the Japanese entertainment-and-technology conglomerate to increase its full-year profit outlook by 9%, included the hit movie "Spider-Man: Brand New Day."
"Sony is the bigger winner today and their success could have been even bigger if more PlayStation 5 Pro units were available," said Serkan Toto, founder of the Kantan Games consultancy.
Sony, a major manufacturer of image sensors used in smartphones, also lifted its outlook for its chips and music divisions.
Sony's games business is expected to be a major beneficiary of the launch of "Grand Theft Auto VI" on November 19, but is grappling with higher memory prices.
Companies flagging the impact include iPhone maker Apple, which this week pointed to pressure on margins during the holiday quarter.
In July, the PlayStation maker said it had secured the amount of memory needed to meet its projected sales volume this year.
NINTENDO PROFIT SLIDES
The memory crunch and a lack of high-profile titles for the Switch 2 have caused concern among Nintendo investors.
The Kyoto-based company said operating profit declined 16% to 73.9 billion yen in the quarter, below analyst estimates, and sales also fell.
There has been no major change to the memory situation and Nintendo is in a position to secure sufficient quantities, President Shuntaro Furukawa said.
The company, which unveiled a price increase earlier in the year, is not considering additional changes, Furukawa said.
Nintendo maintained its full-year profit forecast and its outlook for sales of 16.5 million Switch 2 units.
The company launched "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" on Thursday; the title received positive reviews.
The "Zelda" game should sell well and give Nintendo a solid quarter, but the company will not release blockbuster titles until the next fiscal year, Toto of Kantan Games said.
AI DISRUPTION FEARS
Amid concerns about chip access, Sony sold 2.6 million PlayStation 5 units during the second quarter, down from 4 million a year earlier.
Some observers expect Sony to launch a successor gaming device in late 2028.
With memory prices a challenge, maintaining active user engagement will be key to supporting profitability as Sony invests in its new platform, Chief Financial Officer Lin Tao said.
Shares of Sony, which the market has worried could be vulnerable to AI disruption, have been buoyant in recent weeks. Sony closed up 7% ahead of its earnings report on Thursday.
($1 = 157.8400 yen)
(Reporting by Sam Nussey; Editing by Christopher Cushing, Christian Schmollinger and Thomas Derpinghaus)
