NIFTY Lifestyle Co.,Ltd. Q2 FY2026 earnings call

• Corporate Purpose and Medium-Term Strategy

  • The company's purpose is to support every individual's decision-making for a happy lifestyle through compassion and technology. It launched the 5-year medium-term management plan XPANSION 2030, targeting FY2030 March term, with a new vision to become a company supporting decision-making in the 100-year lifespan era, split into two business domains: LIFE STYLE and WORK STYLE.
  • The company is expanding both the domain axis (LIFE STYLE/WORK STYLE) and value proposition axis (search/advice).

• Core Business Performance (Nifty Real Estate, LIFE STYLE Segment)

  • Nifty Real Estate has maintained strong growth, building positive network effects even amid a difficult market environment with rising property prices: cautious, information-hungry users are drawn to the platform for its large inventory, easy new listing alerts and comparison tools.
  • App download growth continues across both rental and purchase segments. Ongoing UI/UX improvements and conversion of web users to app users drives user loyalty. Nifty Real Estate won the top spot for both number of listed properties and number of search filter options for the second consecutive year, and the app received the 2025 Good Design Award in the system and service category.

• Value Expansion Initiatives (Future Growth Drivers)

  • In the housing category, "Sumai Sagashi no Madoguchi" (Home Search Desk) launched in June 2024, expanding user support beyond property search to adjacent areas. The service aims to increase revenue via higher per-user average revenue and usage frequency by enabling sustained engagement, rather than one-off user interactions.
  • In the wellness category, the company expanded from the hot spring bath business to general wellness, strengthening its member base and delivering personalized value. The Nifty Onsen (Nifty Hot Spring) app was relaunched in October 2025 to improve search and discounts, and the company launched new offline consultation services at bath facilities, including the "Uranai Bench" (Divination Bench) service to create new touchpoints for wellness and life planning advice.
  • Subsidiary Doors (operator of Gaiheki Tosou no Madoguchi, the Exterior Painting Desk platform) obtained general construction business license in early September 2025, expanding its service scope: previously focused on single-family home projects, it can now take on large-scale projects over 500,000 yen including apartments, multi-family buildings, commercial real estate and office buildings, and expand into interior renovation beyond exterior painting. Doors launched full entry into the B2B market targeting major corporations and real estate companies, with three service lines: B2C matching, nationwide direct renovation services, and B2B services. Existing matching operations now prioritize operating profit stability, while direct renovation is positioned as the core future growth driver.

• Corporate Value Improvement and Financial Strategy

  • The company reallocates cash flow generated by core Nifty Real Estate to investments in future value expansion growth initiatives. It maintains a base policy of delivering stable and sustained shareholder returns while pursuing required investments for long-term growth. Starting this fiscal year, it set a target payout ratio of 50%.

1. LIFE STYLE segment: Q2 cumulative revenue grew 17.1% year-over-year, driven by the core Nifty Real Estate business within the housing category. App-based user acquisition and repeat usage initiatives delivered strong performance in the home purchase segment. Both conversion (CV) volume and average per-conversion value increased, contributed by growth in Nifty Real Estate's purchase segment. This segment accounts for the vast majority of total consolidated revenue, driving overall company growth. 2. WORK STYLE segment: Q2 cumulative revenue declined 4.4% year-over-year. The decline stems from a pullback after large one-off project revenue at subsidiary GiRAFFE&Co. from September 2024 to March 2025; excluding this impact, revenue grew 2.5% year-over-year. Account growth was supported by new client acquisitions including Mercari Ads for DFO advertising operations.

• Overall full-year FY2026 performance is tracking ahead of plan. As of the end of the first half (cumulative Q2), EBITDA and operating profit are already at ~45% of full-year guidance, which is significantly above the average progress rate of the past two fiscal years, even though the company's business is seasonally weighted to the fourth quarter (Nifty Real Estate's peak season is January to March).
  • Full-year annual dividend is guided at 54 yen per share, with an interim dividend of 27 yen per share implemented as planned, aligned with the new 50% target payout ratio policy.
  • The company completed a buyback of up to 32,000 shares, and will consider future opportunistic buybacks based on growth investment progress, optimal capital structure, and stock price conditions.

No explicit material risks or operational failures were discussed in the available transcript. Doors' current moderate revenue slowdown is framed as a planned transitional period as it shifts existing matching operations to profit-focused operation and invests in scaling its new renovation business, which is expected to deliver long-term growth.

No question and answer section is included in the provided transcript.