Can the Human Resources segment get past the second-quarter profit trough and deliver growth from the third quarter onward?

FY2027-Q1 revenue increased 38.2% year on year to ¥9,092 million, operating profit increased 40.6% to ¥1,147 million, and quarterly profit attributable to owners of the parent increased 12.2% to ¥631 million. The full-year forecasts are revenue of ¥39,000 million and operating profit of ¥5,400 million, putting first-quarter progress at 23.3% for revenue and 21.2% for operating profit. Revenue is close to the 25% implied quarterly run rate, while operating profit is somewhat below it, making H1 profit progress a key focus.

In its Q&A, the company explained that as job-hunting starts earlier, interviews held in the second quarter are more likely to translate into accepted job offers and recorded revenue from the third quarter onward. At the same time, placement-support staff increased by 105 from FY2026-Q4 to FY2027-Q1, so personnel costs are being incurred ahead of revenue. Accordingly, the key point to assess in FY2027-H1 is not simply whether revenue increased, but how many interviews, placements and accepted job offers the additional staff generated and whether they absorbed the fixed-cost burden.

Regarding recruitment KPIs, the company said that recruitment placements increased 121% year on year and recruitment revenue increased 149%. In FY2026, the consolidation of HRteam as a subsidiary also contributed to the Human Resources segment's results, so the year-on-year growth includes both organic growth and the expansion of the consolidation scope. In the H1 results, it will be important to distinguish HRteam's contribution, placements and placement fees in the existing business, and productivity per career adviser.

At present, the company has not disclosed standalone second-quarter revenue or operating profit, the increase in personnel costs, the number of placement-support staff at the end of H1, or the conversion rate from placements to revenue. The H1 simple 50% benchmarks of ¥19,500 million for revenue and ¥2,700 million for operating profit are not targets set by the company, but merely mechanical reference points that disregard seasonality. If results fall below them, the key question is whether the company can explain quantitatively the second-quarter profit trough and its recovery outlook from the third quarter onward.