Sony Pictures rides ‘Spider-Man’ to strong fiscal first quarter

Sony Pictures Entertainment rode the box office performance of “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” and “22 Jump Street” to a profitable fiscal first quarter.

For the three months ending June 30, Sony Pictures posted operating income of $78 million, up 109% from a year earlier. Revenue increased 23% to $1.93 billion.

Tokyo-based consumer electronics giant Sony Corp., the parent company of the film and television studio, recorded net income of $265 million, up more than 750% from the same period a year earlier, when it eked out a small profit. Revenue was up 6% to $17.9 billion.

Sony’s Culver City studio has been trimming overhead after announcing a cost-cutting initiative at an investors conference in November. Some of the cuts have come through layoffs.

Sony attributed the studio’s first-quarter improvement to the “strong worldwide theatrical performances” of its high-profile sequels.

Released May 2, “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” has taken in $707 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo.

Although it is one of the highest-grossing films of the year, the movie’s box office tally lags behind that of the four other “Spider-Man” films that Sony Pictures has released since 2002.

“22 Jump Street,” the Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum-starring follow-up to 2012’s “21 Jump Street.” The sequel has out-performed the original picture, grossing $279 million worldwide since bowing June 13.

The performance of the “Spider-Man” and “Jump Street” pictures compared favorably to “After Earth,” which was released during the same quarter a year ago and was among the biggest flops of 2013.

Shares of Sony were up more than 5% in midday trading to $18.43.

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