KDDI Corporation Q2 2027 Earnings Recap

KDDI shares fell 4.1% after earnings, with investors likely focused on the outlook: management said operating income should meet its target, but cited Rakuten roaming revenue arriving only in the second half and acknowledged pressure in finance and energy. First-half adjusted operating profit rose 13.9% year over year, though part of Telecom Core’s gain came from cost controls and a change in sales-promotion-cost accounting.

Key Takeaways

• First-half adjusted operating profit increased JPY 77.4 billion, or 13.9% year over year; revenue and profit exceeded the company’s initial plan.
• Telecom Core profit rose 16.7%; management attributed growth beyond mobile partly to cost transformation and accounting changes to sales-promotion costs.
• Smartphone subscriptions reached 33.34 million, up 420,000 year over year. Churn improved 0.03 percentage points to 1.18%, while mobile ARPU rose JPY 70, or 1.6%.
• Personal Growth profit was weighed down by lower finance and energy profits. Management expects finance profit to turn higher in Q4 and energy profit in Q3, citing mortgage-rate revisions and the expected resolution of timing effects.
• Rakuten roaming revenue, absent from the initial forecast, is expected from the second half; management said it remains confident of achieving the fiscal-year operating income target.