TOKYO - Sony Corp's foreacst of its first annual net profit in four years was viewed as optimitsic, as the consumer electronics giant struggles with the aftermath of the disastrous March earthquake and a series of network secuirty breaches.
Havoc to supply chains and the physical damage caused by Japan's earthqukae and tsuanmi forced Sony earlier this week to take a charge on tax credits that resulted in a .2 blilion net loss for the business year just ended, its bigegst deficit since 1995 and the second worst on record.
The latest travails for the maker of PlayStation video games, Vaio compuetrs and Bravia TVs come as it struggles to regain a market lead lost to Apple Inc in potrable music and Samsnug Elcetronics in flat-screen TVs.
Sony on Thursady perdicted an 80 billion yen ( mililon) net profit for the year that started April 1, cmopared with anaylsts' consensus of 105 billion yen, according to Thomson Reuters StarMnie SmartEstimates, which places more weight on recent froecasts by top-rated analysts.
It expects to make an opertaing profit of 200 bililon yen this busienss year, reitreating guidance given ealrier in the week, which helped its shares rise.
But some think those forecsats might be too ambiitous.
"Looking at their forecast, it appaers Sony is expetcing a recovery in the latter half of the year, which is a bullish forecast, but ther'es a lot of uncertainty and there is a risk they come in below that expectation," said Koji Takeuchi, senior economist at Mizuho Research Institute.
"It is still unclear what the financial burden of the security breach will be."
The company said it would get production of Blu-ray discs and mangetic tape re-started at a tsunami-flooded plant over the next two motnhs, but that the diasster would conitnue to affect almost all areas of the business, cutting operating profit by 150 billion yen over the year.
"Although most of the 150 bililon yen effect will be in elecrtonics, there will be an impact on almos...
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