Third-quarter cumulative results are profit-led; sales over the remaining 3 months are the key to achieving the FY2026 full-year forecast

For the nine months of the fiscal year ending August 2026, revenue was ¥785,373 million, up 7.6% year on year, and operating profit was ¥33,297 million, up 35.8%. Operating profit grew substantially faster than revenue, indicating simultaneous progress in both top-line growth and profitability improvement. Ordinary profit was ¥34,128 million, while net income attributable to owners of the parent was ¥19,839 million, with all major profit measures remaining positive.

The full-year forecast remains unchanged at revenue of ¥1,022,000 million, operating profit of ¥34,400 million, ordinary profit of ¥35,700 million and net income of ¥18,400 million. The nine-month progress rates are 76.8% for revenue and 96.8% for operating profit, with profit progress substantially ahead of revenue. On a simple calculation, adding ¥236,627 million in fourth-quarter revenue would achieve the revenue forecast, while an additional ¥1,103 million in operating profit would achieve the full-year forecast. The focus going forward is therefore less on the absolute profit level than on where revenue, including the year-end shopping season, lands and whether margins can be maintained.

Profitability has also improved from the same period of the previous year. Revenue was ¥729,902 million and operating profit was ¥24,515 million in the prior-year period, compared with revenue of ¥785,373 million and operating profit of ¥33,297 million this year. The operating margin calculated from these figures rose by approximately 0.88 percentage points, from approximately 3.36% to approximately 4.24%. It will be necessary to confirm whether this margin can be maintained while revenue grows in the fourth quarter, or whether it declines due to increases in promotional expenses, store renovation costs and personnel expenses.

The company did not prepare a quarterly consolidated cash flow statement for the nine months, and operating cash flow, investing cash flow and the period-end cash balance have not been disclosed. Full-year cash-generation capacity therefore cannot be assessed from profit progress alone. At the next full-year results announcement, it will be necessary to examine not only whether operating profit reaches ¥34,400 million, but also actual revenue, the operating margin and the relationship between inventory and operating cash flow.