Ridge-i’s latest guidance revision is a margin story more than a revenue story. The company raised revenue guidance for the year ending July 2026 by just 3.6%, to ¥2,900m, but lifted operating and ordinary profit by 44.9%, to ¥500m, and net profit by 76.2%, to ¥370m. Management said larger and longer generative-AI consulting and development projects, stronger utilisation of employees, and lower new-business selling costs from repeat customers and partners are doing more of the work than simple topline expansion.
| Metric | Previous guide | Revised guide |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ¥2,800m | ¥2,900m |
| Operating profit | ¥345m | ¥500m |
| Ordinary profit | ¥345m | ¥500m |
| Net profit | ¥210m | ¥370m |
| EPS | ¥48.73 | ¥85.85 |
That geometry looks less mysterious in the third-quarter numbers. Through April, sales were up 1.5%, to ¥2,078m, yet operating profit rose 51.2%, to ¥401m. In the custom AI solutions business, revenue climbed 21.0%, to ¥1,188m, and segment profit jumped 142.1%, to ¥349m. The digital marketing business moved the other way, with sales down 16.4% and segment profit down 57.1%.
The company says demand has stayed firm even after April. It cited continued orders from large existing customers, bigger project size in generative AI consulting and development, and a healthy pipeline of candidates for new work. A March order tied to its SBI relationship is a material piece of the story: the guidance notice says most of a roughly ¥400m order from SBI Holdings will be recognised this year, while the presentation says March orders from SBI Holdings and SBI Securities totalled ¥415m and are progressing smoothly.
Net profit, however, gets help from a different lever. Ridge-i expects a ¥79m gain on the planned sale of all shares in subsidiary Star Music Entertainment to SBI Holdings, which it says will be booked as extraordinary income. The deal is still conditional on shareholder approval at a meeting scheduled for July 15, with closing planned for July 16, and the estimated gain could change depending on completion procedures or the subsidiary’s earnings before the transfer. Special gains are pleasant company, but they are not the operating story.
For readers, the distinction matters. Ridge-i’s upgrade rests mainly on better mix and better margins in custom AI, not on a heroic leap in group revenue. The share sale sweetens the net-profit line, but it is a one-off. In an AI market that often invites hand-waving, this filing is unusually clear about which engine is doing the pulling.