Q1 earnings growth well ahead of the FY2027 plan

FY2027-Q1 consolidated revenue was ¥88,449 million, up 11.8% year on year, operating profit was ¥5,461 million, up 173.4%, and ordinary profit was ¥5,320 million, up 185.0%. Net profit attributable to owners of the parent also increased 309.4% to ¥3,292 million, with profit growth outpacing revenue growth. The earnings presentation described revenue, operating profit, ordinary profit and quarterly net profit as all reaching record highs for a first quarter.

The FY2027 full-year forecasts are revenue of ¥400,000 million, operating profit of ¥20,000 million, ordinary profit of ¥19,500 million and net profit of ¥12,500 million. Progress at the Q1 stage was 22.1% for revenue, 27.3% for operating profit, 27.3% for ordinary profit and 26.3% for net profit, meaning the profit items were ahead of the 25% benchmark based on a simple equal quarterly allocation. Revenue progress, however, was only 22.1%, so it is necessary to determine whether revenue recognition will accelerate in the first half or whether the earnings lead is accompanied by a revenue shortfall.

In FY2026-H1, the year-earlier period, revenue was ¥170,912 million, operating profit was ¥7,879 million, ordinary profit was ¥7,760 million and net profit was ¥4,493 million. At the next interim results, exceeding at least these levels will be the basic benchmark for the year-on-year comparison. In particular, whether operating profit, which improved sharply in Q1, accumulates to around ¥10,000 million in the first half, or roughly half of the full-year forecast, will be a useful measure of the achievability of the ¥20,000 million full-year forecast. This ¥10,000 million figure is not the company's first-half plan, however, but an analytical benchmark based on a simple allocation of the full-year forecast.

The earnings summary stated that, as of Q1, there had been no change to the full-year earnings forecast or annual dividend forecast. The annual dividend is planned at ¥144 per share, an increase of ¥14 from the previous year's actual dividend of ¥130. Next time, we will assess not only whether the earnings forecast has been revised, but also whether the three commitments of ¥20,000 million in operating profit, ¥12,500 million in net profit and a ¥144 dividend remain intact in light of the first-half results.