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SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son is considering various options for chipmaker Arm after Nvidia abandoned its bid to acquire the company.
Alessandro Di Chomo | Nurfoto | Getty Images
SoftBank posted its biggest gain in nearly three years for its flagship technology investment arm, the Vision Fund, in the December quarter as valuations of technology companies recover.
SoftBank’s December quarter performance against LSEG estimates is as follows:
- Net sales: 1.77 trillion yen ($11.9 billion), compared to the forecast of 1.8 trillion yen.
- Net profit: 950 billion yen compared to the forecast of 196.5 billion yen.
Vision Fund posted an investment profit of 600.7 billion yen, continuing its recovery from a record loss last year. This increase is the highest since the fiscal year ended March 2021, when the Vision Fund recorded an increase of 3.59 trillion yen.
SoftBank’s net income was also its first quarterly profit after four consecutive losses.
SoftBank’s flagship tech investment unit struggled in the fiscal year that ended last March, posting a record loss of about $32 billion as tech stocks slumped and stakes worsened in some of its businesses in China. .
Vision Fund has been profitable for the past three quarters.
SoftBank announced a $5.5 billion investment gain in the December quarter after selling a majority stake in chip design company Arm to one of its wholly owned Japanese subsidiaries.
Arm went public in the US last year. The British company was acquired by SoftBank in 2016 for about $32 billion at the time, and Arm’s initial public offering valued the company at more than $50 billion.
SoftBank’s Tokyo-listed shares closed 11% higher ahead of the earnings report, after Arm announced earnings results on Wednesday and announced earnings forecasts that beat market expectations.
SoftBank also said the valuations of two major companies in which Vision Fund invests are rising: Chinese ride-hailing app Didi Chuxing and TikTok owner ByteDance.
In the June 2023 quarter, Vision Fund posted its first investment profit for the fifth consecutive quarter, showing early signs of new growth at the same time as a price recovery in technology stocks.
SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son said the company will enter “defensive” mode in 2022, slowing down its investment pace and taking a more cautious approach. In June, Son declared a shift to “attack” mode, emphasizing his excitement about the potential of artificial intelligence technology. Vision Fund has exposure to AI through investments in companies such as China’s SenseTime.
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