A juncture to confirm the first-half upward revision against actual results and assess whether the full-year forecast will be reset

In the first quarter of the fiscal year ending March 2027, revenue was ¥7,817 million, operating profit was ¥222 million, ordinary profit was ¥245 million and net profit attributable to owners of the parent was ¥168 million. Year on year, revenue rose 15.9%, operating profit 63.1%, ordinary profit 58.1% and net profit 71.1%. The operating margin also rose from approximately 2.03% in the same quarter of the previous year to approximately 2.85%. Reaching approximately 50.4% of the full-year operating profit forecast of ¥441 million in the first quarter alone is a factor raising expectations for the next results announcement.

Subsequently, the FY2027-H1 forecasts were raised from revenue of ¥13,540 million to ¥15,836 million, operating profit from ¥208 million to ¥424 million, ordinary profit from ¥300 million to ¥520 million and net profit from ¥204 million to ¥351 million. The revised operating profit forecast is approximately twice the previous forecast. The company attributed the upward revision primarily to order volumes from major domestic customers in the Chemicals Business exceeding assumptions and greater pass-through of higher procurement costs while natural fats and oils prices remained at elevated levels.

Simply back-solving from first-quarter results and the revised first-half forecasts indicates that second-quarter standalone revenue of approximately ¥8,019 million and operating profit of approximately ¥201 million will be required. The first-quarter operating margin was approximately 2.85%, while the implied second-quarter operating margin is approximately 2.51%. Achieving the first-half forecast will therefore require not only continued revenue growth but also the maintenance of margins after price pass-through. First-half performance should be assessed not merely by revenue, but by the accumulation of operating profit.

The previous full-year forecasts were revenue of ¥27,267 million, operating profit of ¥441 million, ordinary profit of ¥629 million and net profit of ¥437 million. The operating profit plan was 12.6% below the previous fiscal year's actual result of ¥504 million. If the first-half operating profit forecast of ¥424 million is achieved, it will represent 96.1% of the full-year plan, implying that only ¥17 million of operating profit would be expected in the second half if the previous full-year forecast were maintained. The company plans to review the full-year forecasts and disclose them when it announces second-quarter results. The focus is therefore on whether the full-year forecasts will be revised upward, left unchanged, or maintained on the grounds that the first-half factors are non-recurring.