Can the ¥41,000 million FY2027 operating profit guidance be achieved in the first half?

In the fiscal year ended March 2026, revenue was ¥335,686 million and operating profit was ¥30,873 million, whereas the full-year forecast presented with the first-quarter results for the fiscal year ending March 2027 is revenue of ¥375,000 million and operating profit of ¥41,000 million. These figures are ¥17,000 million and ¥7,500 million, respectively, above the full-year forecast as of May of revenue of ¥358,000 million and operating profit of ¥33,500 million. First-quarter revenue was ¥99,089 million, operating profit was ¥15,440 million and the operating margin was 15.6%, above the full-year forecast operating margin of 10.9%.

If half of the full-year forecast is used simply as the first-half progress benchmark, FY2027-H1 revenue would need to reach ¥187,500 million and operating profit ¥20,500 million. Based on first-quarter results, the required second-quarter standalone amounts are revenue of ¥88,411 million and operating profit of ¥5,060 million. These are not figures disclosed by the company as quarterly targets, but benchmark levels based on 50% of the full-year plan. They are nevertheless useful for assessing whether the first quarter’s high profit margin was driven by temporary factors and whether profitability can be maintained in the second quarter.

At the next results announcement, we will want to check not only first-half revenue and operating profit, but also progress against the ¥41,000 million full-year forecast, the second-quarter standalone profit margin, and the pace of increases in advertising expenses and selling, general and administrative expenses. The first-quarter financial summary available this time does not provide quantitative supplementary details such as revenue and profit by segment, order intake and order backlog, or sales volumes. It will therefore also be important to see whether the first-half results disclose the specific breakdown of which businesses supported the ¥7,500 million increase in the operating profit forecast.