FY2026 first-half revenue and earnings growth accelerate; Q3 focus is on repeatability

Revenue in the first half of FY2026 was ¥16.474 billion, up 12.9% year on year. Operating income was ¥1.929 billion, up 57.5%; ordinary income was ¥1.941 billion, up 54.3%; and interim net income attributable to owners of the parent was ¥1.289 billion, up 53.3%. Profit growth was greater than revenue growth, suggesting that improvements in existing-store profitability, rather than simply an increase in store count, made a significant contribution.

On a comparable first-half basis, revenue increased from ¥12.684 billion in the first half of FY2024 and ¥14.590 billion in the first half of FY2025 to ¥16.474 billion in the first half of FY2026. Operating income also increased from ¥1.224 billion in the first half of FY2025 to ¥1.929 billion, with the operating margin improving by approximately 3.3 percentage points, from around 8.4% to 11.7%. In the next earnings release, whether this margin improvement was maintained in Q3 will be an important factor in assessing the likelihood of achieving the full-year forecast.

The company cited the expansion of the fresh salad bar and drink bar offerings, the Korean Gourmet Fair, changes to the かつ雅 product lineup, promotional initiatives, new store openings and the consolidation of Asahi Meat as factors behind the first-half earnings growth. However, the first-half results reflect the combined effects of multiple initiatives, and the company has not disclosed a breakdown quantifying how many millions of yen each initiative contributed to revenue and operating income.

Standalone Q2 revenue was ¥8.233 billion and operating income was ¥898 million, up 12.7% and 29.8%, respectively, year on year. As standalone Q2 growth was somewhat more moderate than the first-half growth rate, Q3 should be assessed not only for the revenue growth rate but also for whether the operating margin improved further from standalone Q2 and whether higher promotional and labor costs are putting pressure on profits.

The full-year forecast and the dividend forecast were both revised upward in the first-half results. In Q3, the key factors for assessing the results will be whether the revised full-year forecast is maintained or raised further, and whether the existing-store indicators that supported the first-half performance remain strong in Q3.