Japanese video game maker Nintendo is eyeing a record group recurring profit of 260 billion yen ($2.2 billion) for the year ended March 31 on strong sales of its handheld DS consoles and a weaker yen, the Nikkei business daily said on Friday.
The profit would be a 62% rise year-on-year, above a consensus estimate for a 242.4 billion yen profit and exceeding Nintendo's previous forecast by 24%.
The Kyoto-based company said on Thursday that its earnings would exceed its January forecasts on stronger-than-expected revenues of about 966 billion yen ($8.1 billion), but did not give specific profit numbers.
The weak yen boosted the value of its foreign-currency-based cash and other assets by 20 billion yen, the Nikkei said without citing sources.
The maker of the Wii game console eyes an operating profit of more than 200 billion yen, which compares with Nintendo's previous forecast of 185 billion yen, and a net profit of about 145 billion yen, about 25 billion yen higher than its January outlook, the paper said.
The company is likely to raise its dividend to 550 yen per share or higher, from its dividend of 390 yen for the business year ended March 2006, the paper said.