Nintendo shares slide on report that Switch successor will be delayed until 2025

By Mike Murphy

Shares of Nintendo Co. slumped in Tokyo trading Monday after Bloomberg News reported the company will delay its next-generation videogame console until 2025.

Bloomberg reported that Nintendo (JP:7974) told some of its game-publishing partners that the successor to the Switch console will not be released until March 2025, at the earliest. It had been expected in late 2024.

The delay likely means that Nintendo will also delay the launches of major new games until the new console comes out, Bloomberg reported. The Switch was launched in 2017.

Nintendo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Nintendo shares fell about 7% in Tokyo. The stock has rallied more than 50% over the past year, and hit an all time-high last week.

The videogame company reported earnings earlier this month, and said it now expects to sell 15.5 million Switch consoles through the year ending in March, up from a previous forecast of 15 million. However, revenue fell 6% year over year. Nintendo did not give a timeline on the Switch's successor in its report or earnings call, but did say "It takes a long time and thorough planning to get ready for new hardware."

-Mike Murphy

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02-18-24 2247ET

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