[naviga:h3]Sprint helps lift SoftBank profit [/naviga:h3]

TOKYO — Japanese Internet, robot and solar company SoftBank Group is reporting a 12-fold climb in quarterly profit, as a turnaround at its U.S. mobile unit Sprint helped it on its way to a record annual profit.

Tokyo-based SoftBank reported Wednesday a January-March profit of $5.1 billion, up dramatically from the same period a year earlier. Quarterly sales rose nearly 2 percent to $20 billion.

For the year through March, SoftBank, which acquired Britain’s ARM Holdings, reported a record $12.5 billion in profit, tripling the amount from last fiscal year.

Much of that came from the sale of part of its stake in Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. But cost reductions at Sprint, which had been dragging on its earnings, also helped, while a strong yen was an unfavorable factor, the company said.

Softbank’s sales at its wireless carrier service and its Yahoo Japan business also thrived, it said. ARM’s operations were also going strong, it said.

Also Wednesday, SoftBank, Sprint and Qualcomm Technologies said they will work together to develop 5G wireless technology, with plans to offer services and devices from late 2019.

[naviga:h3]Wendy’s tops Wall Street forecasts[/naviga:h3]

DUBLIN, Ohio — Wendy’s Co. (WEN) on Wednesday reported first-quarter earnings of $22.3 million.

The Dublin, Ohio-based company said it had net income of 9 cents per share.

The results exceeded Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 8 cents per share.

The chain posted revenue of $285.8 million in the period, also beating Street forecasts. Four analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $279.3 million.

Wendy’s expects full-year earnings to be 45 cents to 47 cents per share.

Wendy’s shares have climbed 12 percent since the beginning of the year. The stock has increased 37 percent in the last 12 months.