SoftBank shares tumble after Vision Fund reports big loss

Shares in Japan's SoftBank Group Corp plunged on Monday after the company reported a heavy loss at its Vision Fund investment arm for a third consecutive quarter.

The shares sank 13 per cent in early afternoon trade - heading for their biggest one-day loss in more than two and a half years.

Analysts said, however, that the share price slide was in part a pullback from a steep rally that had been driven by hopes of more share buybacks. As of Friday's close, SoftBank shares had gained more than 40 per cent since October.

"Various expectations including another round of share buy-backs had pushed their share prices higher, and now they are in an adjustment phase," SBI Securities analyst Shinji Moriyuki said.

Just a day before Friday's quarterly results, SoftBank announced the completion of its plan to spend 400 billion yen ($2.88 billion) to buy back its own shares.