Mobile Factory Q1 FY26 Net Profit Up 10% to ¥141mn on Game Catalog Strength; FY26 Full-Year Profit Guided +68% on Lower Tax Base

Mobile Factory, Inc. (TSE: 3912), a small-cap Tokyo-listed mobile game and blockchain studio best known for the location-based train-station collection game Ekitouzu (Eki Memo!) and the Symbol-blockchain NFT game Uplift, released its Q1 FY12/2026 consolidated earnings short report (Kessan Tanshin) under J-GAAP on April 24, 2026. Net sales rose 7.7% year-on-year to ¥749 million, EBITDA rose 16.9% to ¥209 million, operating profit rose 17.0% to ¥209 million, ordinary profit rose 16.8% to ¥205 million, and net profit attributable to owners of the parent rose 10.0% to ¥142 million. Basic EPS was ¥21.02 versus ¥17.42 a year earlier — the per-share gain outpacing the headline profit growth thanks to the share-cancellation programme executed at the end of March (see balance-sheet section).

Q1 revenue +7.7%, operating profit +17%

The result reflected a strong start to the new fiscal year for Mobile Factory's mobile-gaming franchise. Operating leverage was meaningful: a ¥54 million revenue increase translated into a ¥31 million operating-profit increase, an incremental operating-margin of roughly 57% on the marginal sales — typical of a digital-game P&L where content costs are largely fixed. Operating margin for the quarter expanded to 27.9% from 25.7%. Non-operating items were broadly neutral (small ¥9.9 million of non-operating expense versus ¥7.3 million a year earlier, weighed by ¥4.6 million of investment-partnership losses and ¥2.5 million of treasury-stock acquisition costs), and the effective tax rate rose to roughly 30% on a small ¥1.6 million extraordinary loss from securities revaluation.

Ekitouzu (Eki Memo!) drives the segment, content business softens

By segment, the Mobile Game business posted revenue of ¥690 million (+9.6% YoY) and segment profit of ¥166 million (+26.2% YoY). Management attributes the gain to the staging of Ekitouzu battle events that were not held in the year-ago quarter, the continued contribution of the accessory gacha launched in April 2025, and a higher overall promotional cadence that lifted user activity. A new "History Function" was rolled out during the quarter, letting players review their long-term play record — designed to deepen retention and community engagement. The company continues to pursue tie-ups with regional municipalities and railway operators to expand Ekitouzu's real-world footprint, and to develop new functionality. The Content business, which operates legacy ringtone subscription services, declined to ¥59 million (-10.6% YoY) with segment profit of ¥44 million (-10.4%) as paying subscribers continue to gradually erode. The "Other" segment (Suishow business) recorded a smaller loss of ¥1 million versus ¥2 million a year earlier. The blockchain-game initiative Uplift, built on the Symbol blockchain and using NFT mechanics, remains part of the broader strategic portfolio but is not separately broken out at the segment level.

Balance sheet: 78.3% equity ratio after share buyback and cancellation

Total assets at quarter-end stood at ¥2.88 billion, down ¥1,099 million from the prior fiscal year-end. The decline was almost entirely on the cash side: cash and deposits fell ¥924 million and accounts receivable fell ¥142 million, reflecting (a) dividend payments, (b) the cash deployed to buy back 643,200 treasury shares (¥800 million), (c) corporate-tax payments, and (d) bonus disbursements. Net assets came in at ¥2.26 billion, down ¥827 million as ¥142 million of quarterly profit and ¥800 million of treasury-stock additions were more than offset by a ¥171 million dividend payout and the March 31 cancellation of 1,000,000 treasury shares (which reduced both retained earnings and treasury stock by ¥1,084 million each). The equity ratio nevertheless rose to a robust 78.3% (from 77.5% at end-FY25), reflecting a debt-free, cash-rich balance sheet typical of Japan's small-cap content studios. Liabilities total just ¥624 million, almost entirely operating accruals.

Annual dividend lifted to ¥51 (vs ¥44)

For FY12/2026, Mobile Factory plans an annual dividend of ¥51 per share (¥25 interim + ¥26 year-end), up from ¥44 last fiscal year (¥20 + ¥24) — an increase of about 15.9%. Combined with the 1.0 million share cancellation executed on March 31 (which permanently removed about 12.6% of pre-cancellation outstanding shares from the float), capital return to shareholders is being raised across both dividend and share-count channels. End-quarter outstanding shares (excluding treasury) were 7,925,495 — down from 8,925,495 at end-FY25.

FY26 full-year guidance: net profit +68% on tax-base normalisation

Full-year FY12/2026 guidance, unchanged from the January 29, 2026 release, calls for revenue of ¥3,500 million (+2.1% YoY), operating profit of ¥1,170 million (+4.3%), ordinary profit of ¥1,180 million (+3.0%), and net profit attributable to owners of ¥819 million (+67.7%), with EPS of ¥126.56. EBITDA guidance is also ¥1,170 million (+4.3%). The headline contrast between modest operating-profit growth (+4.3%) and very strong net-profit growth (+67.7%) reflects a normalisation of the effective tax rate: the prior year's net profit was depressed by one-time tax-base items, and on a like-for-like operating basis the underlying business is being guided to grow only mid-single-digits. Q1 net profit of ¥142 million represents roughly 17% of the full-year ¥819 million target — broadly in line with the typical first-quarter contribution given seasonal event scheduling in the back half. Management reiterates that the FY26 plan rests on continued Ekitouzu momentum, ongoing partnership development with railway operators and municipalities, and disciplined content-investment in the blockchain-game pipeline.

JapanStockPulse provides informational content only and does not constitute investment advice. Figures are taken from the company's published earnings short report and may be subject to subsequent revision.