SoftBank books record profit after exiting Nvidia, announces 4:1 stock split

Stock Split: Tokyo-based SoftBank Group Corp. has reported a net profit of 2.5 trillion yen ($16.6 billion) for the July–September quarter, marking its third consecutive profitable quarter. The sharp earnings surge was largely driven by the sale of its entire Nvidia Corp. stake and strong investment gains from its Vision Fund holdings.

Nvidia sale delivers major boost

SoftBank sold its entire holding in Nvidia, securing around $5.8 billion ahead of a series of artificial intelligence–focused investments planned by founder Masayoshi Son. The firm had increased its Nvidia stake to about $3 billion by the end of March, and the sale significantly contributed to the group’s quarterly windfall.

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Vision Fund reaps gains from OpenAI

The company’s Vision Fund unit reported an investment gain of 3.5 trillion yen, primarily from its stake in ChatGPT creator OpenAI, which alone added 2.16 trillion yen to the quarterly results.

Shares rally amid AI optimism

SoftBank’s share price has surged 78 per cent over the three months ending in September — its best performance since late 2005 — amid a global bull run in technology and AI-related stocks. Son’s strategy to build a broad ecosystem around AI has positioned the company as a major player in the sector, with notable holdings in OpenAI and Oracle Corp.

Market concerns over AI bubble

Despite the stellar earnings, market watchers have raised caution over a possible “AI bubble,” warning that heavy capital investments in AI infrastructure, including data centers, may not yield profits proportional to their scale.

Stock split announced

In a move to enhance liquidity, SoftBank also announced a 4-for-1 stock split effective January 1.