KADOKAWA H1 sales up 5.8%, games profit falls 50.3%

KADOKAWA on November 12 reported consolidated results for the April-September period of its fiscal year ending March 2027, with sales up 5.8% year on year to 141.72 billion yen, according to gamebiz.jp. Operating profit fell 25.3% to 4.144 billion yen, ordinary profit dropped 27.0% to 4.946 billion yen, and the company posted a net loss of 4.712 billion yen, compared with a 1.491 billion yen profit a year earlier.

The net loss included about 5.4 billion yen in special losses from extra retirement payments tied to an early retirement program.

Games segment profit halves

The games segment posted sales of 12.533 billion yen, down 24.5% year on year, and segment profit of 3.312 billion yen, down 50.3%. KADOKAWA said FromSoftware's new release ELDEN RING Tarnished Edition and repeat sales of ELDEN RING held steady, but the segment faced a tough comparison with the same period a year earlier, when ELDEN RING NIGHTREIGN sold strongly.

By segment, publishing and IP creation recorded sales of 77.438 billion yen, up 7.1%, and profit of 2.585 billion yen. The anime and live-action video segment saw sales rise 27.7% to 26.849 billion yen but posted a loss of 804 million yen. Web services sales fell 3.0% to 10.77 billion yen, with profit down 14.7% to 1.338 billion yen; Niconico premium membership declined, though sales were flat after an August price revision. Animelo Summer Live 2026 attendance fell well below the previous year because of a temporary reduction in venue size.

The education and EdTech segment posted sales of 9.41 billion yen, up 9.3%, and profit of 1.837 billion yen, up 10.2%, helped by Vantan's opening of Vantan Music Academy in April 2026. KADOKAWA left its full-year forecasts unchanged except for net profit, which was cut. It forecasts full-year sales of 300.3 billion yen, operating profit of 10.1 billion yen and ordinary profit of 12 billion yen.