• Interim OP beats raised guidance on gold – Q1-2 FY3/26 OP rose +20.6% YoY to ¥4.21bn, ahead of company forecasts, with the outperformance due mainly to higher gold prices. Sales rose +4.4% YoY to ¥97.64bn, and one-off gains related to recent M&A boosted ordinary profit. The strong H1 aided a second upward revision to full-year forecasts. However, the company faces headwinds in its Machinery Business, including delays in belt conveyor construction at its Industrial Machinery segment and in truck supplies at its UNIC Machinery segment, limiting the upward earnings momentum from higher metal prices. We have raised our FY3/26 estimates to reflect the boost from gold.
