Will HR Technology’s gains in pricing and efficiency continue into FY2027-H1?

In FY2027-Q1, the HR Technology business generated revenue of ¥455.4 billion, up 33.2% year on year, and US-dollar revenue of $2,858 million, up 20.9%. EBITDA+S was ¥215.7 billion, up 80.6% year on year, and the EBITDA+S margin was 47.4%, representing profit growth substantially above that of the consolidated company.

The explanation for the profit improvement is that, even in an environment without strong US hiring demand, advances in monetization and management efficiency increased profitability per job posting. US ARPJ growth was disclosed at 35% in FY2027-Q1, suggesting a shift toward a model that does not depend solely on growth in the number of job postings. However, the absolute level of ARPJ and the specific Q1 figure for the US job-posting index have not been sufficiently disclosed, leaving scope to determine whether higher pricing reflects pricing, product mix or customer mix.

In the comparable FY2026 full year, the HR Technology business generated revenue of ¥1,458.4 billion and EBITDA+S of ¥549.9 billion, for a 37.7% margin. Q1’s 47.4% margin was 9.7 percentage points above the full-year level, making it important to determine whether a margin in the 40% range can be maintained in H1 and whether the margin improvement reflects temporary restraint in advertising or personnel expenses. The company has previously shifted toward cost control after periods of aggressive hiring and product-development investment, so the level of growth investment should be monitored alongside margins.

In FY2027-H1, the focus will be on whether the company can disclose the US job-posting index, absolute ARPJ, usage of Indeed PLUS and AI recruiting functions, and US and Japanese revenue growth rates on a consistent basis. In particular, HR Technology revenue in Japan was ¥348.2 billion in FY2026, down 4.6% year on year, so the question is whether a recovery following the transfer of the Japanese human-resources business will accompany the improvement in US pricing.