Japanese mobile operator Softbank, which announced a $20 billion takeover of US firm Sprint Nextel, said Thursday its nine-month net profit slipped 5.9 percent on investment-linked losses.
For the April-December period, Softbank posted a net profit of 235.37 billion yen ($2.59 billion) on sales of 2.51 trillion yen, up 4.6 percent from a year earlier, it said.
Strong growth in new mobile phone contracts was offset by losses in investment and loan-related costs, it said in a statement.
The country’s third-biggest mobile operator has benefited from growing demand at home for Apple’s iPhone.
Softbank had been the only Japanese mobile operator to offer the smartphone until it was followed by KDDI, the country’s second-largest operator.
For the full year to March, Softbank predicted that its operating profit will “be sure to surpass 700 billion yen” as it strengthens its network and customer base. It did not give further details.
The firm’s chief Masayoshi Son said Thursday the planned Sprint Nextel takeover will initially weigh on Softbank’s bottom line.
“In the first year there will a negative impact but after handling that we expect record profits from the second year on,” he was quoted by Dow Jones Newswires as saying.
The marriage with Sprint — the biggest overseas acquisition by a Japanese firm — will see Softbank take 70 percent of the firm, the number three US operator behind AT&T and Verizon Wireless.
However, the US Department of Justice is urging regulators to delay endorsing Softbank’s takeover of Sprint Nextel until the national security ramifications are evaluated.
Investors and analysts have cast doubt on the deal, announced in October, which will see already heavily indebted Softbank taking on even more loans.
Softbank's nine-month net profit slips 5.9%
