Nintendo Co., Ltd. (TSE: 7974) reported consolidated full-year results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 (FY3/2026) under Japanese GAAP. Revenue almost doubled, rising 98.6% year-on-year to ¥2,313,051 million, operating profit climbed 27.5% to ¥360,117 million, ordinary profit jumped 45.6% to ¥542,196 million, and net profit attributable to owners of the parent rose 52.1% to ¥424,056 million. EPS came in at ¥364.51 versus ¥239.47 prior year. Operating margin compressed to 15.6% from 24.3% as hardware-heavy launch-year mix lowered the blended margin, but ROE expanded to 14.9% from 10.5%. Comprehensive income rose 52.1% to ¥477,372 million.
Switch 2 launches at scale: 19.86 million units in 10 months
Nintendo Switch 2 launched in June 2025 and shipped 19.86 million units through fiscal year-end — a stronger launch-year run-rate than any prior Nintendo platform. Hardware momentum was reinforced in March by the release of Poke a Pokémon. The original Nintendo Switch, which entered its 10th year in March, still moved 3.80 million units, taking combined hardware shipments comfortably above 23 million units in the year.
Software: Mario Kart World 14.7M; Switch 2 software base 48.7M
The launch software lineup performed strongly. Mario Kart World, released alongside the console, reached 14.70 million units including hardware bundles. Donkey Kong Bananza (July) sold 4.52 million, and Pokémon LEGENDS Z-A Nintendo Switch 2 Edition (October, packaged version only) sold 3.94 million. Total Switch 2 software shipments reached 48.71 million units. On the legacy platform, the original-version Pokémon LEGENDS Z-A sold 8.85 million units (including Switch 2 Edition downloads), Super Mario Galaxy 2 2.76 million, and Super Mario Galaxy 2.60 million; Switch software shipments totaled 136.91 million units as cross-play with Switch 2 sustained demand for classics such as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Nintendo Switch Sports. Digital sales rose 25.0% to ¥407.6 billion, lifted by package-bundled downloads. IP-related revenue fell 9.7% to ¥73.5 billion on weaker film-related sales.
Overseas 76.9%; cash pile near ¥1.32 trillion
Overseas sales reached ¥1,778.1 billion, putting the international ratio at 76.9%. Ordinary profit was further padded by ¥82.8 billion of equity-method investment income, ¥46.0 billion of interest income, and ¥44.3 billion of FX gains, and ¥32.6 billion of investment securities sale gains lifted extraordinary income. Total assets rose to ¥3,805.3 billion (+12.0%), driven by higher cash and receivables, while the equity ratio eased slightly to 77.6% from 80.2%. Operating cash flow surged to ¥289.8 billion from ¥12.1 billion as profit converted to cash, investing cash flow turned to a ¥210.1 billion outflow (vs ¥753.1 billion inflow) on heavier securities purchases, and financing cash flow consumed ¥249.7 billion on dividends and buybacks. Period-end cash and equivalents stood at ¥1,316.7 billion.
New dividend policy: dividend lifted to ¥219; FY27 guides ¥162
The FY3/2026 annual dividend was set at ¥219 per share (¥42 interim + ¥177 year-end) — versus ¥120 prior year — for a 60.1% consolidated payout ratio and a 8.9% DOE. Nintendo revised its dividend policy mid-year: from this fiscal year-end, the company sets dividends at the higher of (a) 40% of consolidated operating profit divided by shares outstanding, or (b) a 60% consolidated payout — a more explicit shareholder-return stance. For FY3/2027, the annual dividend is guided at ¥162. Full-year FY3/2027 guidance — based on FX assumptions of ¥150/USD and ¥175/EUR — points to revenue of ¥2,050,000 million (-11.4%), operating profit of ¥370,000 million (+2.7%), ordinary profit of ¥430,000 million (-20.7%) as launch-year FX gains fade, and net profit of ¥310,000 million (-26.9%) with EPS of ¥268.90. The full-year software pipeline for Switch 2 already includes Yoshi and the Mysterious Book (May), Star Fox (June), and Splatoon Raiders (July).
| Metric | FY3/2026 | FY3/2025 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (¥ billion) | 2,313.1 | 1,164.9 | +98.6% |
| Operating profit (¥ billion) | 360.1 | 282.6 | +27.5% |
| Ordinary profit (¥ billion) | 542.2 | 372.3 | +45.6% |
| Net profit (¥ billion) | 424.1 | 278.8 | +52.1% |
| EPS (¥) | 364.51 | 239.47 | +52.2% |
| Operating margin | 15.6% | 24.3% | -8.7pp |
| Switch 2 hardware sales (million units) | 19.86 | — | Launch year |
| Switch 2 software sales (million units) | 48.71 | — | Launch year |
| Switch hardware sales (million units) | 3.80 | 10.82 | -64.9% |
| Digital sales (¥ billion) | 407.6 | 326.1 | +25.0% |
| Overseas sales ratio | 76.9% | — | — |
| Annual dividend (¥) | 219 | 120 | +82.5% |
| FY27 operating profit guidance (¥ billion) | 370.0 | — | +2.7% |
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.