SMC raised its full-year operating profit forecast to ¥294.0bn from ¥219.0bn on Nov 13, after the automatic-control equipment maker's operating profit rose 74.0% to ¥157.9bn in the six months to September.
Sales rose 38.3% to ¥553.6bn and net profit attributable to owners rose 62.9% to ¥129.0bn. Orders rose 64.3% to ¥640.3bn, and the half-year securities report ties the jump mainly to semiconductor-related demand. The operating margin reached 28.5%, which SMC's results presentation says was well above plan.
Where the growth came from
The presentation's year-on-year bridge credits volume with a 26.0% increase in sales, currency with 11.5% and price with 0.6%. By region, volume added ¥50.5bn in Greater China (China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, up 42%), ¥22.6bn in other Asia (37%), ¥16.7bn in Japan (21%), ¥7.7bn in Europe (10%) and ¥6.1bn in North America (12%).
Costs rose too. SMC cites higher raw material, depreciation and labour costs, but says volume and a weaker yen more than covered them. The average dollar rate was ¥159.48 against ¥146.02 a year earlier.
The revised guidance
SMC said it raised the full-year forecast on the strength of second-quarter progress. Revised operating profit is 54.3% above last year's ¥190.5bn and 34.2% above the previous guide.
| Metric | Prior-year actual | Previous guidance | Revised guidance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sales | ¥842.5bn | ¥1.00tn | ¥1.07tn |
| Operating profit | ¥190.5bn | ¥219.0bn | ¥294.0bn |
| Ordinary profit | ¥235.5bn | ¥239.0bn | ¥325.0bn |
| Net profit attributable to owners | ¥167.3bn | ¥170.0bn | ¥238.0bn |
Management expects semiconductor-related orders to stay at high levels in the second half and machine-tool demand tied to data centres to remain strong. It expects EV-related automotive demand in China to slow slightly. In China, secondary-battery investment is slowing as customers hold back spending. SMC's consolidated October orders index was 151, against a base of 100 for the last fiscal year, with semiconductor and electrical customers at 205.
What tempers the picture
Ordinary profit grew 60.5%, less than operating profit, because a foreign-exchange gain a year earlier turned into a ¥3.1bn loss. SMC's presentation also carries the standard warning that actual results could differ materially from the forward-looking figures.
The board declared an interim dividend of ¥500 per share, payable from Dec 1, 2026, the same amount as a year earlier. For earlier reporting on the company, see Earlier Tokyo Brief coverage.