Q1 was ahead on profit, but consistency with the full-year plan for lower profit will be assessed in H1

Q1, covering 1 March 2026 to 31 May 2026, recorded operating revenue of ¥153,881 million, operating profit of ¥17,486 million and net income attributable to owners of the parent of ¥8,966 million. The full-year forecasts are ¥600,000 million, ¥45,000 million and ¥15,000 million, respectively, putting Q1 progress at 25.6%, 38.9% and 59.8%. Operating profit and net income in particular were ahead of operating revenue in terms of progress, indicating that profit levels at the start of the year were ahead of the full-year plan.

Year on year, operating revenue increased 12.7%, operating profit 34.5% and net income 105.8%. By contrast, the company’s FY2027 full-year forecast calls for operating revenue to increase 5.4% from the previous year’s ¥569,370 million to ¥600,000 million, while operating profit is projected to decline 25.8% from ¥60,655 million to ¥45,000 million and net income 28.9% from ¥21,092 million to ¥15,000 million. Q1’s strong performance alone is not sufficient to conclude that the full-year assumption of lower profit has been eliminated.

To achieve the full-year forecast as of the end of Q1, the remaining 3 quarters must generate operating revenue of ¥446,119 million, operating profit of ¥27,514 million and net income of ¥6,034 million. Operating profit reached 38.9% of the full-year forecast in Q1 alone, so exceeding ¥22,500 million in H1 would surpass a simple 50% progress benchmark. However, in its Q1 disclosure the company cited multiple factors, including increases in transaction volume and operating receivables, fee-rate revisions and higher interest rates, but did not disclose a bridge breaking down the contribution of each factor or the cost burden expected in the second half.

For FY2027-H1, progress will be assessed against operating revenue of ¥300,000 million, operating profit of ¥22,500 million and net income of ¥7,500 million, representing half of the full-year forecasts on a simple basis. These are not H1 targets set by the company, but mechanical benchmarks that do not take seasonality into account. At the H1 results, it will be necessary to check the amount of second-half costs recognized, including core-system renewal costs, whether the full-year forecasts have been revised, and whether the progress in profit reflects a temporary improvement in Q1.