Investors must be banging their heads against a wall after Sony (Tokyo Stock Exchange: 6758.T-JP) issued another profit warning on Wednesday - this time related to struggles in its smartphone business.
Sony expects an annual net loss of 230 billion yen ($2.15 billion) , nearly five times its forecast in July of 50 billion yen, after suffering a 180 billion yen impairment charge for its embattled smartphone division.
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This marks the sixth profit warning since CEO Kazuo Hirai took the helm in 2012, but little has changed as the Japanese electronics giant continues its struggle against Apple and Samsung in the premium end of the smartphone market.
Investors voted with their feet on the news, exiting Sony's shares Thursday; the stock closed 8.6 percent lower in Tokyo trade.
On a call with investors on Wednesday, Hirai expressed his "deep regret" at scrapping the dividend for the fiscal year and assured the market that he will create a company that "amazes and moves" customers.
Apple, Samsung dominance
But analysts said Sony is facing tough competition for its Xperia models in the rapidly maturing smartphone market against Apple (AAPL) and Samsung (: 593'A-KR).
"It is a market where you have two big strong players that are accounting for a big share of that market and it is tough for all of the others," Roberta Cozza, research director at Gartner, told CNBC in a phone interview.
"The premium segment for smartphones is slowing down because, in mature markets, users are keeping their devices longer and upgrade when they feel features are convincing enough to buy a unit."
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Cozza added that intense competition from low-cost Chinese players such as Xiaomi is causing Sony to be "squeezed in the middle" as they cannot compete at the low end.
Games key to turnaround?
The group has been aiming to restructure the company and announced it would cut 15 percent of its mobile unit staff this fiscal year. Earlier this year it offloaded its failing PC division and spun off its TV business into a separate company.
Sony said in a statement on Wednesday that it would concentrate on its premium line-up and reduce the number of models in its mid-range offering.
Sony, known for its successful PlayStation 4 games console and camera products, has a lot of assets to leverage and this could be the key to turning around the Japanese giant, according to analysts.
"When you look at their capabilities they have many more assets than most other companies in the smartphone market," Ian Fogg, head of mobile analysis at IHS, told CNBC by phone.