SoftBank Posts Quarterly Loss of ¥1.12 Trillion Despite 16% Sales Growth
Key Facts
SoftBank Group reported a net loss attributable to shareholders of ¥1.12 trillion, equivalent to $7.09 billion, for the three months ended September 30, 2026, in results announced by the group on November 10. The result fell short of the Bloomberg consensus estimate of a ¥129.32 billion profit and marked a reversal from a ¥2.50 trillion profit in the same period a year earlier. The results cover the second quarter of fiscal 2026, within the six-month period ended September 30. By contrast, quarterly sales rose 16% to ¥2.2 trillion from ¥1.9 trillion a year earlier. Revenue growth thus coincided with a sharp reversal in net income.
Analysts’ estimates varied widely before the results were announced, with forecasts from three analysts surveyed by LSEG ranging from a ¥233 billion profit to a ¥113 billion loss for the July-to-September quarter. But the reported loss exceeded even the most pessimistic end of that range. Bloomberg’s comparison shows the gap between the actual result and the consensus estimate, which pointed to a ¥129.32 billion profit. The year-on-year comparison also highlights the scale of the swing from a profit in the corresponding period of 2025 to a loss in the current quarter. Higher sales did not prevent the decline in the bottom line.
Among the items tied to the result, the group recorded a loss of ¥597.25 billion during the six months through September 30 after realigning plans to purchase power-generation equipment for U.S. artificial intelligence data center projects. The company described the move as a “realignment” of procurement plans, with its accounting impact extending into the first half of the fiscal year. The item provides a measure of the cost of adjusting plans to equip AI infrastructure projects. But it does not by itself explain the full quarterly loss of ¥1.12 trillion. The Vision funds, by contrast, recorded investment gains during the quarter, according to financial coverage of the results.
Total financing costs rose to ¥461.9 billion in the quarter ended September 30, according to Investing.com. Coverage linked the increase to a margin loan backed by an Arm stake, large bond issuances and higher financing rates overall. The burden coincided with investment losses, while the group also incurred the loss tied to rearranging purchases of power equipment for U.S. data centers. These items highlight several factors behind the quarterly result, from financing and investment costs to adjustments in capital spending plans. Vision fund gains, by contrast, did not prevent the overall result from falling to a loss.
The results announcement followed a rise in SoftBank shares in Tokyo trading on Tuesday, November 10, when they closed up about 14% ahead of the release, according to the Associated Press. The agency said the group’s shares had lost about a third of their value over the preceding year through that date, amid pressure on stocks linked to artificial intelligence. Reuters reported that SoftBank shares had nearly halved from the start of June through November 10. These moves describe periods before the announcement and do not establish the direction of trading after the results were released. SFTBY depositary receipts closed at $11.26 on November 10, according to EL7 data.
SoftBank’s calendar lists its fiscal 2026 third-quarter results in February, without specifying a day in the published annual calendar. Those results will follow the first-half period ended September 30, whose release included second-quarter results on November 10. Investors will look to the next report for a reading on the group’s performance in the subsequent quarter, alongside developments in financing costs and data center projects. The upcoming results will also show whether sales continue the year-on-year growth recorded in the latest reported quarter. The published calendar did not specify a date in February for the results.