Why is Sony’s PS5 the biggest trend in Canadian markets today?

Summary

• Sony Corporation’s (NYSE:SNE) PlayStation 5 (PS5) launched in North American and Mexican markets on Thursday, November 12
• The PS5 consoles reportedly flew off the digital shelves soon after they were launched.
• Sony shares climbed nearly three per cent on Wednesday, November 11, a day before the launch.
• Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s new Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S gaming consoles hit the markets worldwide two days before PS5, on November 10.

After a much long wait, Sony Corporation’s (NYSE:SNE) PlayStation 5 (PS5) is finally available in Canada and people are going gaga over it. The brand-new gaming consoles were launched in North America and Mexico on Thursday, November 12, just in time for Christmas shopping season, and Canadian are not letting this opportunity pass them by.

With spike in COVID-19 cases recently, the company had announced earlier in November that the new PlayStation gaming units would only be available on online platforms and would not be sold in physical stores.

The PS5 consoles reportedly flew off the digital shelves soon after they were launched on Thursday, resulting in shopping cart glitches and unexpected long delivery timelines. Some reports also claimed stock shortage due to overwhelming demand despite the coronavirus pandemic.

While many customers came across sold-out signs within few hours of the PS5 launch, the company has reassured about restocking. Let’s find out how the PS5 sales are doing in Canada and how the Sony stocks are doing in light of the sales.

PS5s Sales in Canada

The PS5s are said to be selling like hot cakes in Canada, like in most places around the world. Ahead of its launch, the company celebrated the arrival of the latest generation of video game consoles by lighting up major monuments across the globe. In Canada, the Princes’ Gate in Toronto lit up on Wednesday night with the PS5 sign, a video of which was posted on PS5 Canada’s Twitter page.

According to the PlayStation’s official blog, PS5 consoles’ suggested local retail price stood at C$ 629.99 and US$ 499.99, while the PS5 Digital Edition console was suggested to be priced at C$ 499 and US$ 399.99 in North America.

While many are reporting that their PS5 stocks are sold out, online stores that have been selling the newest model are Best Buy Canada, Wal-Mart Canada, Amazon Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN), EB Games, Toys R Us, Costco, Shoppers Drug Mart, etc.

Sony Stock (NYSE:SNE) Performance Amid PS5 Launch?

As hardcore gamers relish their preordered PlayStation 5 consoles or frantically refresh online stores in hopes of a restock, investors are taking note of the Sony stock. Ahead of the PS5 launch in North America, Sony stocks rose about four per cent in November so far. Although, the scripts registered a slump of about three per cent during intraday trading on Monday, November 9.

The shares climbed nearly three per cent on Wednesday, November 11. As of Thursday, the stocks are valued at US$ 87.11 a pop.

When most companies got kicked in the teeth by the COVID-19 pandemic this year, the online video gaming industry was one of the few that saw a surge in demand. A primary reason behind this was the rising practice of social distancing and homebody economy. And as more people embraced the work-from-home status quo and turned to online gaming for entertainment, gaming stocks like those of Sony Corporation saw quite a spike.

Shares of Sony Corporation secured a growth of over 28 per cent this year. Though its share price took a tumble around the times of the market crash in March, it climbed nearly 66 per cent in the following eight months.

Sony scrips grew by almost 33 per cent in the last six months and nearly eight per cent in the last three months. The stock gathered an average share trading volume of 1.45 million in the last 10 days and of 1.21 million in the past month.

Sony Corporation’s YTD chart of stock performance (Source: Refinitiv/Thompson Reuters)

Microsoft’s Xbox Series X Sales Vs Sony’s PS5 Sales

The competition between Xbox and PlayStation is an old one. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) released its new Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S gaming consoles on Tuesday, November 10, worldwide and triggered a similar fervor among gamers. Like the PS5 units, the Xbox Series X and S also sold out quickly and most stores are still awaiting a restock.

The Xbox Series X units were reportedly priced at C$ 599, while the Xbox Series S were available for C$ 379 in Canada.

As for sales figures, Executive Vice President of Gaming at Microsoft Phil Spencer was quoted by media reports saying that the company “will not” be publicly disclosing the latest Xbox console sales numbers even in a scenario where Xbox Series X/S sales numbers outshine those of PlayStation 5.

While we may just not find out which of the two brands secured more sales, gamers are enjoying the newest gaming console releases and investors are keeping their eyes open.