Nintendo Posts Lowered Profits, Cuts Switch Sales Target

Nintendo reported lackluster earnings and lowered its full-year sales outlook for the Switch console following the release of its latest earnings report.  

The Japanese video game giant generated $11 billion in sales for the nine months ending Dec. 31, 2021, a 6% decrease year-over-year. Nintendo reported a $3.2 billion profit during the period, down 3% compared to the same period the year prior.

Nintendo had a previous goal to sell 24 million units this fiscal year but now hopes to offload 23 million units, citing the semiconductor shortage and COVID for the modified sales target. 

• Between October 2021 and December 2021, 10.67 million Switch consoles were shipped.
• The Switch is officially Nintendo’s best-selling home console ever, with 103.54 million units sold.
• Despite the historic mark, hardware sales decreased 21% year-over-year over nine months. 

Nintendo’s adjusted sales for the Switch follow a previous full-year sales forecast of 25.5 million units, but the target was cut to 24 million units last quarter for the same reasons.  

Arms Race 

Sony’s PlayStation 5 has sold 17.3 million units globally since its November 2020 release despite the chip shortage.

Microsoft saw Xbox sales increase 4% year-over-year for the fiscal quarter ending Dec. 31, 2021, despite limited supply of the consoles.