Shiseido Company (4911) Q1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q1 2026 core operating profit rose to ¥13.03 billion, up ¥4.8 billion or 57.9% year-over-year, despite a 3% like-for-like net sales decline to ¥232 billion, driven by structural reforms and disciplined cost management.

• EBITDA increased 21.9% year-over-year to ¥25.54 billion, and profit attributable to owners of parent rose 127.1% to ¥8.37 billion.

• Comprehensive income swung to ¥13.76 billion from a loss of ¥16.87 billion in Q1 2025.

• Transformation efforts under the 2030 Medium-Term Strategy are accelerating to enhance resilience and adaptability.

• Management remains committed to shifting to a new growth trajectory, with actions underway to address sales declines by brand and region.

Financial highlights

• Net sales: ¥232 billion, down 3% YoY like-for-like; core operating profit: ¥13.03 billion, up 57.9% YoY; operating profit: ¥12.33 billion, up 71.2% YoY.

• EBITDA margin improved to 11.0% from 9.2% year-over-year.

• Gross profit margin improved to 78.4% from 77.6% YoY.

• Free cash flow improved to -¥7.1 billion from -¥12.4 billion YoY.

• All profit categories (operating, pre-tax, quality) improved.

Outlook and guidance

• Full-year 2026 forecast unchanged: net sales ¥990 billion (+2.1% YoY), core operating profit ¥69 billion (+55.0%), profit attributable to owners of parent ¥42 billion, and basic EPS ¥105.12.

• Dividend forecast for FY2026 is ¥60 per share.

• Company expects to deliver over ¥25.0 billion in cost savings for FY2026 through ongoing structural reforms.

• Monitoring Middle East tensions and raw material/logistics cost pressures; mitigation actions in place.

• Decline in Japan inbound sales expected to be offset by growth in China and travel retail.