SoftBank Q1 results: $2.9 bn profit, stock up 1.3% on AI rally

SoftBank Group Corp. reported a Q1 profit of $2.9 billion, rebounding from a loss a year earlier, driven by investments in AI companies like Nvidia and Open AI. Quarterly sales rose 7% to $12 billion. The company's founder, Masayoshi Son, emphasized the potential of AI and cited the success of investments in Arm Holdings and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. SoftBank's stock rose 1.3% after the earnings announcement.

SoftBank Group Corp. (9984.T) reported a net profit of $2.87 billion in the first quarter of 2025, marking a significant rebound from a net loss of $174.3 billion in the same period a year earlier. The Tokyo-based company's earnings were bolstered by gains in its investments in artificial intelligence (AI) companies, particularly Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) and Coupang Inc. (CPNG.N).

The company's quarterly sales rose by 7% to $12 billion, driven by favorable market conditions for technology companies. SoftBank's Vision Fund unit, which holds $45 billion worth of late-stage companies ready to list soon, posted an investment gain of $4.94 billion, with a significant portion of this gain coming from a surge in the share price of Coupang over the quarter [1].

SoftBank's founder, Masayoshi Son, emphasized the potential of AI and cited the success of investments in Arm Holdings Plc. and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC). Son is leading a $40 billion funding round for OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, and is also involved in the Stargate project, a $500 billion scheme to develop data centers in the United States [2].

SoftBank's stock rose by 1.3% after the earnings announcement, reflecting investor confidence in the company's AI-focused strategy. The company's planned $6.5 billion deal to acquire US chip firm Ampere Computing LLC and another $30 billion investment in OpenAI are further encouraging investors [3].

However, SoftBank's performance in exiting from investments and distributing profit has been patchy of late. The Vision Funds have made a cumulative investment gain of just $5 billion out of a total committed capital of $172.2 billion as of the end of June [1].

Investors and analysts are awaiting updates on how these investments will be financed, the timeline for returns to materialize, and whether assets will be sold to fund the new projects. SoftBank has so far raised around $4.8 billion through a sale of some of its T-Mobile share holding in June [3].

The company's Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto has cited the company's end-March net asset value of ¥25.7 trillion ($175 billion), saying the company has ample capital to cover its funding needs. The Vision Fund's exits included DoorDash Inc., View Inc., Wiz Inc., and Peak in the business year ended March [3].

References:
[1] Reuters. (2025, August 6). SoftBank Group swings profit in first quarter, driven by AI investments. Retrieved from https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/softbank-group-swings-profit-first-quarter-market-enthusiasm-tech-stocks-2025-08-06/
[2] Bloomberg. (2025). SoftBank builds Nvidia, TSMC stakes. Retrieved from https://finance.yahoo.com/news/softbank-builds-nvidia-tsmc-stakes-033016394.html
[3] Bloomberg. (2025). SoftBank swings profit on Nvidia bet. Retrieved from https://finance.yahoo.com/news/softbank-swings-profit-nvidia-bet-063613840.html