Yesterday brought terrible news for electronics and video game leader Sony (NYSE:SONY). The leak of its gaming market plans for the next several years was a huge blow by any measure. Yet, the news today was much brighter, even if it didn’t help shares much. Sony stock fell fractionally despite new word on just how much faster Sony devices sell than their Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) equivalents.
The console wars, as they’re so often called, have long favored Sony. This latest bout—already made strange by supply chain hassles on both sides—seems to be little different, as word emerged on sales numbers and made Microsoft look downright sad by comparison. The PlayStation 5 has outsold the Xbox Series S and Series X combined by a factor of three to one. In fact, the PlayStation 5 has sold over 50 million units total so far, which puts it on track to not only continue trouncing Microsoft, but also to outsell its own record-breaker, the PlayStation 4. In fact, Sony even has the goal of selling 25 million consoles before the end of this fiscal year, which ends on March 31, 2024. Should it achieve said goal, it will be the biggest selling year ever for Sony consoles.
And There’s Better to Come
Give Sony credit; it’s not resting on its laurels. In fact, there’s new technology afoot that might make Sony an even better proposition in the not-too-distant future. A new technology known as “Adaptive Difficulty Calibration for Skills-Based Activities in Virtual Environments” would effectively allow games to modify their difficulty levels on the fly, ensuring that the player always gets a decent challenge, no matter how good, or how bad, their quality of play actually is.
Is Sony a Buy or Sell?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on SONY stock based on three Buys assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 17.11% rally in its share price over the past year, the average SONY price target of $106 per share implies 16.88% upside potential.
