Sumitomo Chemical Raises FY2026 Core Operating Income Forecast to ¥270 Billion

Key Facts

Sumitomo Chemical raised its forecast for core operating income for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2027, to 270,000 million yen from its previous estimate of 215,000 million yen, according to the financial forecast revision announced by the company. It increased its revenue forecast to 2,490,000 million yen from 2,360,000 million yen. It also raised its operating income forecast to 215,000 million yen from 177,000 million yen, and net income attributable to owners of the parent to 90,000 million yen from 70,000 million yen. The forecast for earnings per share rose to 54.27 yen from 42.40 yen. These figures show that the forecast revision covered revenue, earnings and dividends, while the fiscal year ends in March 2027, not at the end of calendar year 2026.

The revision was based on first-half results, with consolidated revenue of 1,172,800 million yen, up 7.1% year on year. Core operating income reached 144,531 million yen, while operating income was 138,058 million yen. Net income attributable to owners of the parent totaled 82,875 million yen for the half-year ended September 2026. According to the company’s financial results, core operating income rose 32.9% to 144.5 billion yen, operating income increased 33.2% to 138.1 billion yen, and net income climbed 108.8% to 82.9 billion yen compared with the first half of the previous fiscal year. The year-on-year comparison shows growth in all three indicators, with net income more than doubling from the same period.

The IT & Mobility Solutions sector was among the performance drivers, with first-half revenue of 311.9 billion yen, an increase of 28.4 billion yen from the year-earlier period. The company attributed growth in sales of semiconductor process materials and core operating profit to increased demand for high-purity chemicals and photoresists. In its new forecasts, it said expected shipments of semiconductor materials in the sector would increase. It also cited progress in its Essential & Green Materials business, alongside the expansion of Sumitomo Pharma’s U.S. business. The company added that progress in Essential & Green Materials came after it had incorporated uncertainty and business-environment risks into its previous forecasts, and that it had made steady progress in its activities.

Factors related to the forecast revision included the performance of Gemtesa in North America; the company said higher sales of the drug supported the adjustment. Elsewhere in its business, Prime Polymer was newly added to the consolidated subsidiaries, a change noted in the results summary in the context of segment plans. The company also recorded equity-method investment profit of 24,479 million yen in the second quarter, attributing it to improved performance at those companies. This profit was part of the quarterly results, while the company identified increased expected shipments of semiconductor materials, progress in Essential & Green Materials, and the expansion of its U.S. pharmaceutical business as drivers of its annual forecast revision. The operating picture therefore spans materials and pharmaceuticals, as well as earnings recorded from equity-method investments.

The company also revised its expected dividends for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2027, raising its year-end dividend to 9.00 yen per share from 8.00 yen and its annual dividend to 17.00 yen from 16.00 yen. Total actual annual dividends were 13.50 yen per share in the year ended March 2026. In the year-on-year comparison, the company recorded revenue of 2,328,515 million yen and core operating income of 208,376 million yen in the year ended March 2026, compared with revised forecasts for the following year of 2,490,000 million yen and 270,000 million yen, respectively. The company’s shares, listed under ticker 4005.T, closed at 565 yen on October 30, 2026. The company set November 10, 2026, as the filing date for its semiannual report and December 2, 2026, as the start of dividend payments. It will also hold a meeting on November 30 to review the strategies of its Agriculture & Life Solutions and IT & Mobility Solutions sectors.