A day after anointing Kazuo Hirai as its next CEO, Sony posted another bruising earnings report.
The Japanese consumer electronics giant reported a $2.1 billion loss for its third fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31 on a 17.4 percent drop in sales to $23.4 billion.
The company, which posted almost a billion in profit during the comparable period a year ago, attributed the lackluster performance to floods in Thailand, unfavorable exchange rates and lower LCD TV sales during the period.
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Sony also projected a deeper loss for the fiscal year. It now projects a $2.9 billion loss — more than double the $1.18 billion forecast in November.
Hirai, who takes over the top spot from Howard Stringer on April 1, is ascending after a difficult year. Sony was hit hard by natural disasters in 2011; first it was hammered by a monster quake and tsunami in Japan, then in October floods in Thailand affected Sony facilities. The company also posted a loss to the tune of $350 million in its second fiscal quarter, and has posted annual losses for several years now.
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Hirai will try and boost the company's core consumer products division and lure customers back from Apple and other rivals. He has his work cut out for him: The consumer products division posted a 24.4 percent decline in revenue to $12.8 billion on lower LCD television sales.
Music revenue also dropped 11.7 percent to $1.6 billion on fewer significant releases. But the Sony Pictures division provided a bright spot: Revenue rose 15 percent on a U.S. basis to $2.06 billion for the period, thanks to greater theatrical revenue and higher TV revenue.