Erste Profit Jumps 20.6% as Komatsu Sales Rise 13.6% in Fiscal Second Quarter

Key Facts

Komatsu said sales rose 13.6% year on year to 1,115.5 billion yen in the second quarter of its fiscal 2026, which ran from July to September, while operating income fell 1.2% to 135.1 billion yen. In the same period, net income attributable to the company rose 13.3% to 95.8 billion yen, but the operating income margin declined 1.8 percentage points to 12.1%. The figures show sales and net income growth alongside contractions in operating income and margin. The company said sales of construction, mining and utility equipment benefited from the weaker yen, higher sales volume and improved selling prices. However, the positive effects of those factors were not enough to offset higher costs on segment profit.

Sales in the construction, mining and utility equipment segment reached 1,032.6 billion yen, up 15.1% from the same period, while segment profit fell 4.5% to 114.3 billion yen. Segment sales rose 5.9% excluding the effects of foreign exchange rates, indicating that sales growth did not rely entirely on currency movements. Overseas sales also increased 14.9% to 1,028.8 billion yen. Komatsu said higher costs outweighed the effects of the weaker yen, higher sales volume and improved selling prices on segment profit. For the six months ended September 30, the company’s sales rose 14.1% to 2,158.6 billion yen, and net income attributable to the company increased 9.2% to 191.9 billion yen.

In the stock market, EL7 data showed KMTUY closing at 43.05 on October 28, then 38.05 on October 29, before rising to 38.87 on October 30. The prices reflect a decline between the October 28 and 29 closes, followed by a partial recovery in the next session. These figures alone do not establish that the earnings announcement caused the share price movement. Komatsu had announced its fiscal 2026 second-quarter results, while its calendar lists late January 2027 as the expected date for its third-quarter results. This gives investors a basis for comparing the next period’s performance with the sales and earnings figures the company reported.

Erste Group’s net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company rose 20.6% to 3,095 million euros in the first nine months of 2026, from 2,566 million euros in the same period of 2025. The group reported the results on October 30, and they cover the first nine months rather than the third quarter alone. Operating income increased 40.1% to 12,031 million euros, compared with 8,587 million, including a contribution of 2,708 million euros from Poland following the first-time inclusion of Erste Bank Polska. Return on tangible equity rose to 20.9% from 16.8% in the comparable period. These indicators put growth in profit and operating income in the context of an expansion partly driven by the inclusion of the Polish business in the group’s results.

Excluding Poland, Erste’s net interest income grew 7.0% year on year in the first nine months, while growth reached 43.4% with the Polish bank included. The group attributed the increase in the Czech Republic and Hungary to lending growth, and in Austria to a lower cost of customer deposits. Fee and commission income rose 9.5% on a comparable basis excluding Poland, and 24.0% including it, to 2.9 billion euros. The group said growth in securities business contributed to the increase in fee income alongside the Polish bank’s contribution. The comparison between growth rates illustrates the effect of Poland’s first-time inclusion alongside the development of existing business in the group’s markets.

The cost of impairment on financial instruments was 753 million euros in the first nine months, including 302 million euros in provisions related to the first-time inclusion of the Polish portfolio under IFRS 9 rules. The group said the provision does not indicate deterioration in the portfolio. On its plans for the region, Chief Executive Peter Bosek said the group’s ambition to expand its loan book to more than 290 billion euros reflects "our confidence in the region and our commitment to financing its future." Erste raised its 2026 outlook, expecting return on tangible equity to exceed 20% and earnings per share to increase by more than 20% compared with 2025 net profit adjusted for one-off items. The outlook follows a return on tangible equity of 20.9% in the first nine months of the year.