2023-08-03 09:32:17
Nintendo has unveiled significantly higher results in the first quarter of its 2023/24 financial year. The Japanese group has benefited in particular from the success of the Mario film and the latest Zelda game. (archive) © KEYSTONE/AP Nintendo and Universal Studios
Published on 03.08.2023
Japanese video game giant Nintendo announced sharply higher results for the first quarter of its 2023/24 financial year on Thursday. The group benefited in particular from the success of the Mario movie and the latest Zelda game, but left its annual forecast unchanged.
Between April and the end of June, the group saw its net profit jump by 52% over one year to 181 billion yen (1.1 billion francs) and its operating profit take off by 82% to 185.4 billion yen. Sales, also helped by the weakness of the yen, climbed 50% to 461.3 billion yen.
Its results were notably driven by the release in May of “Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom”, the latest installment in its famous series of action-adventure games, which achieved the best start to date for a Nintendo title, with more than 10 million copies sold in three days. The Kyoto group also benefited from the success far beyond its expectations of the film “Super Mario Bros” released in April, climbing to 15th place in the world ranking of films having made the best box office receipts, according to the specialized site. Box Office Mojo.
The prowess of Mario and Zelda, two of Nintendo’s flagship franchises, fueled a sharp increase in sales of Switch consoles (+13.9%) and games (+26.1%), the group said in a statement. . Aware that this exceptional performance in the first quarter will be difficult to replicate, Nintendo has kept its 2023/24 guidance unchanged. It is still counting on an annual net profit of 340 billion yen, which would be a decline of 21% over one year.
He expects over this period an operating profit of 450 billion yen (-11%) and sales of 1.450 billion yen (-9%). Nintendo has also remained cautious regarding its expectations for its aging Switch console, saying it still hopes to sell an additional 15 million units over its entire current fiscal year. The console has sold more than 129 million copies since its release in 2017.
These weak forecasts tend to give credence to new rumors concerning the next console of the group which circulated in the press at the beginning of the week, reporting the release of a new machine in the second half of 2024.
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