Nintendo’s first-half net profit more than tripled in sales

Nintendo Co. said its first-half net profit more than tripled from a year ago as the Covid-19 epidemic continues to sell strong.

Japanese video game maker net profit rose 213.12 billion yen ($ 2.04 billion) for the six months ended September 30, from Y62.02 billion a year earlier.

According to Wall Street Journal estimates, net profit for the second quarter was Y106.48 billion, compared to Y106.64 billion for the second quarter. It won the Y77.03 billion estimate by analysts’ visible alpha poll.

Nintendo raised its revenue and net profit projections for the full year ending March 2021. The company expects revenue to increase by 7.0% to Y1.400 trillion compared to the previous 8.3% decline, and net profit is projected to rise 16% to Y300.00 billion, down 23% from the previous outlook.

Nintendo expects to sell 24.0 million switch consoles this fiscal year, an increase from the previous plan of 19.0 million units. The company reported sales of 12.5 million units in the first half, up from 6.9 million units a year ago.

The company’s first-half revenue rose 73% to Y769.52 billion, helped by strong sales of “Animal Crossing: New Horizons”.

Second quarter revenue was Y411.42 billion, compared to Y358.11 billion in the previous quarter.

Nintendo claims to have sold 14.3 million copies of “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” in the first half.

Write to Kosaku Narioka at [email protected]