Sony Corp., considering Daniel Loeb¡¯s push for a partial sale of its entertainment assets, said Thursday it posted first-quarter earnings that beat estimates after cutting costs, introducing new smartphones and benefiting from a weaker yen.

Net income totaled ?3.48 billion in the three months that ended June 30, compared with a loss of ?24.6 billion a year earlier, the Tokyo-based company said. Profit was expected to be ?2.6 billion, according to the median estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.

Sony raised its full-year revenue forecast 5.3 percent on the weaker yen while cutting expected sales of TVs and digital cameras as it considers Loeb¡¯s plan for an initial public offering of the entertainment units. Chief Executive Officer Kazuo Hirai is preparing to release the PlayStation 4 this year to drive game earnings as it loses ground to Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple Inc.