JX Advanced Metals Corporation (TSE: 5016) reported consolidated full-year results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 (FY3/2026) under IFRS. Revenue rose 23.7% year-on-year to ¥884,638 million, operating profit jumped 55.5% to ¥174,967 million, pre-tax profit rose 57.3% to ¥169,082 million, and net profit attributable to owners climbed 53.3% to ¥104,645 million from ¥68,271 million prior year. Basic EPS came in at ¥112.94 versus ¥73.53. Operating margin expanded to 19.8% from 15.7%, and ROE rose to 15.6% from 11.0%. Comprehensive income more than doubled to ¥162,555 million (+101.9%) on equity-method gains and FX. Equity-method investment income surged from ¥61.0 billion to ¥114.5 billion, primarily reflecting MLCC contributions.
Copper price hit a record $6.28/lb on Jan 29
The macro tailwind for the year was the rally in copper. LME copper started the fiscal year at 438¢/lb, climbed on concerns over U.S. copper tariffs, overseas-mine supply disruptions, and U.S. rate-cut speculation, and hit an all-time high of 628¢/lb on January 29, 2026. After consolidation in the high range, copper closed the year at 552¢/lb, with the period average up 66¢ YoY to 491¢/lb. USD/JPY tracked from ¥140 at year-start to ¥160 at year-end, averaging ¥151 (¥2 stronger yen YoY). FY3/2027 guidance is based on $5.20/lb LME copper and ¥150/USD.
Base Materials: operating profit +¥64.9 billion to ¥139.5 billion
By segment, Base Materials was the largest driver. Despite headwinds from yen strength and the absence of prior-year gains on the partial sale of SCM Minera Lumina Copper Chile (MLCC), revenue rose 33% to ¥407.9 billion and operating profit jumped ¥64.9 billion to ¥139.5 billion, lifted by the copper rally and MLCC's recognition of deferred tax assets in its equity-method line. In the metals & recycling business, JX is currently studying production cuts at its smelters as copper-concentrate procurement terms (TC/RC) have deteriorated sharply.
Semiconductor Materials +48%; new Hitachinaka plant opens
The Semiconductor Materials segment posted revenue of ¥177.2 billion (+20%) and operating profit up ¥12.8 billion to ¥39.5 billion (+48%), driven by AI-related demand for advanced-logic and HBM memory sputtering targets serving data centers. To capture the structural demand, JX opened the new Hitachinaka plant on March 26, 2026 as the central hub for advanced materials — focused on semiconductor sputtering-target supply expansion plus R&D and new-business creation for the advanced semiconductor supply chain.
The Information & Telecom Materials segment posted revenue of ¥318.7 billion (+20%) and operating profit up ¥6.4 billion to ¥31.5 billion, lifted by smartphone-driven recovery in rolled copper foil and expanded adoption of high-performance copper alloys (including titanium-copper) in AI servers. The reversal of the prior-year negative goodwill from Tatsuta Electric Wire & Cable consolidation and yen strength were headwinds, partially offset by ongoing profit-structure reform.
Balance sheet strengthens; net D/E ratio improves to 0.36x
Total assets grew to ¥1,505.3 billion from ¥1,283.0 billion, lifted by trade receivables, inventories, PP&E, and equity-method investments. Equity attributable to owners reached ¥726.5 billion (vs ¥615.3 billion), with the equity ratio inching up to 48.3% from 48.0%. Interest-bearing debt rose ¥23 billion to ¥324.3 billion, and net interest-bearing debt rose ¥15 billion to ¥257.9 billion. The net D/E ratio improved 0.04pp to 0.36x. Operating cash flow was ¥107.5 billion (vs ¥215.4 billion, after prior-year working-capital normalization), investing cash flow consumed ¥77.3 billion on PP&E acquisition, and financing cash flow was -¥24.9 billion (vs -¥172.2 billion as prior year included a large special distribution).
New shareholder-return policy: 25% payout floor at ¥20/share from FY27
The board on May 11, 2026 announced a revised shareholder-return policy effective FY3/2027: a consolidated payout-ratio floor of ~25% (up from ~20% previously) with a per-share dividend floor of ¥20. In cases of large asset sales or large share buybacks, total-return ratio will be assessed separately. For FY3/2027, given a planned large share buyback, the dividend is set at the new floor — ¥20.00 annual (¥10 interim + ¥10 year-end). FY3/2026 dividend totals ¥31.00 per share (¥6 interim + ¥25 year-end), with a 27.4% payout ratio and 4.3% DOE. Full-year FY3/2027 guidance points to revenue of ¥930,000 million (+5.1%), operating profit of ¥190,000 million (+8.6%), pre-tax profit of ¥178,000 million (+5.3%), and net profit attributable to owners of ¥114,000 million (+8.9%) with EPS of ¥125.97.
| Metric | FY3/2026 | FY3/2025 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (¥ billion) | 884.6 | 714.9 | +23.7% |
| Operating profit (¥ billion) | 175.0 | 112.5 | +55.5% |
| Pre-tax profit (¥ billion) | 169.1 | 107.5 | +57.3% |
| Net profit attrib. to owners (¥ billion) | 104.6 | 68.3 | +53.3% |
| Basic EPS (¥) | 112.94 | 73.53 | +53.6% |
| Operating margin | 19.8% | 15.7% | +4.1pp |
| ROE | 15.6% | 11.0% | +4.6pp |
| Equity-method investment income (¥ billion) | 114.5 | 61.0 | +87.8% |
| Base Materials op. profit (¥ billion) | 139.5 | 74.6 | +87.0% |
| Semiconductor Materials op. profit (¥ billion) | 39.5 | 26.7 | +47.9% |
| Information & Telecom Materials op. profit (¥ billion) | 31.5 | 25.1 | +25.5% |
| LME copper period average (¢/lb) | 491 | 425 | +66¢ |
| Annual dividend (¥) | 31.00 | 109.55* | — |
| FY27 operating profit guidance (¥ billion) | 190.0 | — | +8.6% |
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. *FY3/2025 dividend includes a ¥91.55 special pre-listing distribution.