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• Core Financial Performance

  • Interim total revenue: 3.078 billion yen (+4.9% YoY), driven by increased active engineer headcount and rising technical service rates
  • Interim operating profit: 260 million yen (-4% YoY), ordinary profit: 263 million yen (-2.3% YoY), net profit: 181 million yen (-2.1% YoY); the decline is due to increased investment in employee compensation improvement and higher advertising/employee benefit expenses tied to 30th anniversary initiatives
  • Both revenue and profit exceeded management's initial interim forecast, due to higher-than-expected technical rate increases and efficient cost management

• Operational Metrics

  • Total engineer headcount at quarter-end: 794, up 15 engineers (+1.9% YoY); 47 hires through the first half (38 new graduate, 9 mid-career), plus 2 additional new graduate hires in October
  • Cumulative operating rate: 92%, down 1.5 percentage points YoY due to client caution amid uncertainty; management maintains focus on engineer growth-focused placement over pure utilization
  • Average daily technical rate: 4,373 yen, up 150 yen (+3.6% YoY), and up ~10% compared to 2022
  • Average daily operating hours: 8.59 hours, down 0.05 hours YoY, and has remained stable in the 8.5-8.7 hour range with no major changes expected going forward
  • Revenue concentration among top 10 clients: 25.2%, down 0.6 percentage points YoY, continuing a multi-decade trend of reduced concentration from 34% 10 years ago to support stable growth and engineer skill development

• Strategic Initiatives (30th Anniversary)

  • HIP completed its 30th anniversary in September 2025 and launched a full rebranding, updating brand messaging, mission, vision, values, corporate logo, and official website
  • Core new mission: "Remain the 'home' for hybrid engineers"; core new vision: "Every employee is a starting point for innovation"; core values: Professional, Respect, Communication, Update
  • Management identified improving engineer value as the top strategic priority, with four key initiatives: (1) continued growth investment including compensation improvement and education platform building, (2) strengthened recruitment by better communicating company value to candidates, (3) sales expansion across national locations to secure new projects that support engineer growth, (4) profit margin improvement through internal system and process updates to align with current business needs
  • HIP announced its first social contribution initiative: an investment in social bonds issued by the Japan Student Services Organization, aligned with the company's focus on human capital development

• Shareholder Return

  • The board approved a share repurchase program of up to 80,000 shares, with a maximum purchase amount of 130 million yen to be completed by March 31, 2026, to enable flexible capital policy
  • A full-year dividend of 70 yen per share is planned, consisting of a 55 yen ordinary dividend and a 15 yen 30th anniversary special dividend, representing a 16 yen increase from the prior year; the dividend payout ratio is expected to exceed 70%, and management maintains a long-term target of 50% payout ratio with a goal of progressive dividends tied to business growth

• Full-year 2026 March fiscal year guidance is unchanged from the initial forecast, with no upward or downward revision
  • Full-year revenue forecast: 6.261 billion yen, +4.9% year-over-year
  • Full-year operating profit forecast: 568 million yen, +0.7% year-over-year
  • Full-year ordinary profit forecast: 569 million yen, +0.8% year-over-year
  • Full-year net profit forecast: 385 million yen, -6.9% year-over-year
  • All underlying forecast assumptions are maintained: operating rate is expected to rise gradually, average operating hours will stay in line with historical averages
  • Full-year hiring plan remains unchanged: 50 mid-career hires and 60 new graduate hires for 2026, with management committed to achieving the plan by improving recruiting appeal and processes

Per segment performance breakdown: All product/industry segments except Transportation Equipment achieved year-over-year revenue growth. Within the Transportation Equipment segment, defense-related business remained solid, but automotive-related client demand softened due to client caution amid external uncertainty, resulting in a segment revenue decline. The Information Processing & Software segment has grown consistently in recent years driven by product systemization trends, with particularly strong ongoing growth in in-vehicle system and communication-related projects. Overall company interim revenue was 3.078 billion yen, a 4.9% year-over-year increase. No absolute revenue figures or contribution percentages were provided for individual segments in the transcript.

• U.S. tariff impacts have led to increased caution among some clients, contributing to a slight decline in operating rate and softness in automotive-related revenue within the Transportation Equipment segment
  • Mid-career hiring in the first half was slower than planned, as job seeker activity was more muted than management expected, creating a risk to achieving full-year hiring targets
  • Operating hours are heavily influenced by client project schedules and workplace policies, and HIP has limited ability to control this core revenue-driving metric
  • General macroeconomic uncertainty stemming from trade policy creates unpredictable client demand trends

The provided transcript does not include a question and answer section, so no content is available for this field.