Persol Holdings has agreed to sell all the shares of Persol Australia Holdings, referred to in its filings as Programmed, to Service Stream Holdings, a wholly owned subsidiary of Australia-based Service Stream Limited. The board resolved on the sale and signed the share transfer agreement on 9 November 2026, and completion is planned for 1 March 2027.
Persol puts the expected price at ¥120bn, based on an enterprise value of A$975mn. The final price will be set after adjustments for net debt and working capital under the agreement. The deal also covers PERSOL APAC Business Support Services Sdn. Bhd., which provides back-office services to Programmed. Programmed holds 60 subsidiaries and sub-subsidiaries that would pass to Service Stream.
Why the headline numbers move
Persol revised its forecast for the year to March 2027, which it first published on 14 May 2026. The revenue guide drops to ¥1.269tn from ¥1.665tn, a fall of 23.8%, and operating profit to ¥61.7bn from ¥71.0bn. Net profit rises to ¥93.8bn from ¥46.5bn, and profit attributable to owners to ¥92.0bn from ¥44.5bn.
| Metric | May forecast | Revised forecast |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ¥1.665tn | ¥1.269tn |
| Operating profit | ¥71.0bn | ¥61.7bn |
| Net profit | ¥46.5bn | ¥93.8bn |
| Profit attributable to owners | ¥44.5bn | ¥92.0bn |
| Adjusted net profit | ¥51.5bn | ¥50.9bn |
The mechanism is accounting. From the third quarter, Persol will classify Programmed as a discontinued operation under IFRS 5 and restate it from the start of the year. Revenue and operating profit therefore cover continuing operations only, while net profit includes both continuing and discontinued operations. Of the ¥396.0bn revenue cut, ¥361.6bn comes from the reclassification for April to February and ¥34.4bn from leaving March out after the planned 1 March transfer.
The profit side carries the estimated gain. Persol expects a ¥50bn gain on the subsidiary shares in the fourth quarter, booked within profit from discontinued operations. The gain and transfer-related costs together add ¥48.0bn to net profit in the revised forecast. That gain is an estimate, not the sale price, and Persol says it may change with the price adjustments and exchange rates.
What the retained businesses show
Persol says the revision reflects only the share transfer and that its outlook for other businesses is unchanged from May. Adjusted net profit is guided at ¥50.9bn against ¥51.5bn before, and adjusted EPS at ¥22.43 against ¥22.68. The dividend forecast is also unchanged, under a policy of paying out at least 50% of adjusted EPS and, in principle, no cuts. The prior-year revenue comparison is restated to ¥1.192tn with Programmed treated as discontinued.
Programmed is large by Persol's standards. It reported revenue of A$3,648mn (¥403.6bn) and net profit attributable to parent shareholders of A$39mn (¥4.4bn) for the year to March 2026. Persol guarantees debt of the unit, and the sale notice does not say how that guarantee is treated at completion.
Persol gives the rationale as portfolio optimisation in its Asia Pacific business, better allocation of resources and improved capital efficiency.