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Recruit Holdings Co
(6098)
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Rating:82Outperform
Price Target:
¥21,367.00
▲(28.68% Upside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:10/19/26
The score is driven primarily by strong financial performance (margin expansion, rising ROE, low leverage, and robust free-cash-flow conversion) and a notably upbeat earnings call with raised full-year guidance. Technicals support the bullish case with a clear uptrend, though momentum indicators are near stretched levels. The key constraint on the score is valuation, with a high P/E and minimal dividend yield.
Positive Factors
Strong profitability and cash conversion
Meaningful margin expansion alongside near-complete conversion of net income into free cash flow indicates stronger operating economics and high earnings quality. This should support reinvestment in platforms and AI, preserve resilience through labor-market cycles, and sustain shareholder returns.
Negative Factors
Japan Fair Trade Commission inspection
The unresolved regulatory inspection creates a durable uncertainty for the Japan Staffing business because potential remedies, costs, or operating changes have not been quantified. Guidance excludes any impact, so an adverse outcome could reduce earnings and constrain management flexibility.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Strong profitability and cash conversion
Meaningful margin expansion alongside near-complete conversion of net income into free cash flow indicates stronger operating economics and high earnings quality. This should support reinvestment in platforms and AI, preserve resilience through labor-market cycles, and sustain shareholder returns.
Read all positive factors
Recruit Holdings Co (6098) vs. iShares MSCI Japan ETF (EWJ)
Market Cap
¥25.96T
Dividend Yield0.14%
Average Volume (3M)3.63M
Price to Earnings (P/E)45.5
Beta (1Y)0.95
Revenue Growth9.31%
EPS Growth43.87%
CountryJP
Employees45,586
SectorCommunication Services
Sector Strength97
IndustryInternet Content & Information
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)411.88
Shares Outstanding1,472,504,200
10 Day Avg. Volume4,338,770
30 Day Avg. Volume3,629,836
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio0.65
Price to Book (P/B)5.86
Price to Sales (P/S)2.51
P/FCF Ratio14.07
Enterprise Value/Market CapN/A
Enterprise Value/RevenueN/A
Enterprise Value/Gross ProfitN/A
Enterprise Value/EbitdaN/A
Forecast
1Y Price Target
¥20,675.00Price Target Upside24.51% Upside
Rating ConsensusStrong Buy
Number of Analyst Covering4
EPS Forecast (FY)561.71
Revenue Forecast (FY)¥4.25T
Recruit Holdings Co Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd. is a multifaceted enterprise that delivers human resources technology and a variety of business-oriented services. Its activities are organized into three primary divisions: HR Technology, Media & Solutions, and Staffing...
How the Company Makes Money
Recruit Holdings primarily makes money through (1) online recruitment/HR technology services and (2) staffing services. In its online recruiting and HR technology businesses, the company earns revenue by monetizing job marketplaces and recruitment...
Recruit Holdings Co Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Aug 07, 2026
(Q1-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Nov 11, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call was strongly positive, led by record Q1 consolidated results, substantial upward revisions to full-year guidance, strong HR Technology and U.S. monetization growth, expanding AI product adoption, and continued progress with GMV-linked business models. The main concerns were weaker U.S. hiring activity, forecasting uncertainty caused by rapid AI adoption, challenging staffing conditions in Europe and Australia, Japan-specific business headwinds, and the unresolved Japan Fair Trade Commission inspection. Highlights significantly outweighed the lowlights.Positive Updates
Record Q1 Consolidated Results
Q1 FY 2026 revenue increased 18.9% year-over-year to JPY 1.04 trillion, EBITDA+S increased 56.5% to JPY 292.8 billion with a 28.0% margin, and basic EPS increased 73.2% to JPY 145.48. Revenue, EBITDA+S, and basic EPS each substantially exceeded initial expectations and reached record highs.
Negative Updates
U.S. Hiring Demand and Job Postings Remain Weak
U.S. hiring demand remained down year-over-year, and the total number of U.S. job postings declined approximately 4% year-over-year in Q1. The full-year outlook assumes an approximately 4% year-over-year decline in total U.S. job postings.
Read all updates
Q1-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Record Q1 Consolidated Results
Q1 FY 2026 revenue increased 18.9% year-over-year to JPY 1.04 trillion, EBITDA+S increased 56.5% to JPY 292.8 billion with a 28.0% margin, and basic EPS increased 73.2% to JPY 145.48. Revenue, EBITDA+S, and basic EPS each substantially exceeded initial expectations and reached record highs.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
For FY 2026, Recruit Holdings assumes an exchange rate of JPY 159.0 per U.S. dollar and expects consolidated revenue to increase 14.4% year-over-year to JPY 4.23 trillion, EBITDA+S to increase 39.1% year-over-year to JPY 1.105 trillion, EBITDA+S margin of 26.1%, basic EPS of JPY 543, and net income of JPY 755.0 billion; HR Technology revenue is expected to increase 18.7% year-over-year globally to $11.4 billion, increase 24.9% year-over-year on a Japanese yen basis to JPY 1.82 trillion, with a segment EBITDA+S margin of 45.8%, while the U.S. is expected to account for 58% of segment revenue, with revenue growth of 25.1% to USD 6.6 billion, U.S. ARPJ growth of approximately 30%, and an approximate 4% year-over-year decline in the total number of U.S. job postings; Europe and others revenue is expected to increase 23.2% year-over-year to USD 2.5 billion, Japan revenue is expected to increase 5.4% year-over-year to JPY 367.0 billion, or be flat at 0% year-over-year at USD 2.3 billion, staffing revenue is expected to be JPY 1.83 trillion with a segment EBITDA+S margin of 5.6%, and MMT revenue is expected to increase 7.1% year-over-year to JPY 605 billion with a segment EBITDA+S process margin of 30% and first half EBITDA+S margin of approximately 31%; the guidance does not reflect any financial impact from the Japan Fair Trade Commission inspection.Recruit Holdings Co Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
86
Very Positive
Balance Sheet
84
Very Positive
Cash Flow
90
Very Positive
| Breakdown | TTM | Mar 2026 | Mar 2026 | Mar 2025 | Mar 2024 | Mar 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 3.86T | 3.70T | 3.56T | 3.42T | 3.43T | 2.87T |
| Gross Profit | 2.28T | 2.19T | 1.98T | 1.85T | 1.88T | 1.53T |
| EBITDA | 860.21B | 762.22B | 655.82B | 575.94B | 491.73B | 504.90B |
| Net Income | 578.59B | 496.91B | 408.50B | 353.65B | 269.80B | 296.83B |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 2.91T | 2.79T | 2.77T | 3.14T | 2.79T | 2.42T |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 853.05B | 725.58B | 808.63B | 1.14T | 877.37B | 669.55B |
| Total Debt | 178.83B | 186.28B | 208.94B | 221.13B | 254.95B | 271.42B |
| Total Liabilities | 1.12T | 1.19T | 1.14T | 1.14T | 1.15T | 1.05T |
| Stockholders Equity | 1.77T | 1.58T | 1.62T | 2.00T | 1.63T | 1.36T |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | 741.01B | 658.73B | 602.41B | 465.43B | 361.44B | 375.23B |
| Operating Cash Flow | 750.55B | 669.43B | 610.36B | 535.36B | 438.19B | 439.61B |
| Investing Cash Flow | -41.54B | -49.74B | -61.05B | -68.79B | -32.68B | -70.74B |
| Financing Cash Flow | -465.50B | -743.48B | -880.48B | -334.65B | -252.06B | -254.37B |
Recruit Holdings Co Technical Analysis
Positive
16605.00
Price Trends
17068.36
Positive
14523.84
Positive
11105.98
Positive
Market Momentum
696.58
Negative
65.53
Neutral
64.44
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For JP:6098, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 16605 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 17902.75, below the 50-day MA of 17068.36, and above the 200-day MA of 11105.98, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 696.58 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 65.53 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 64.44 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for JP:6098.
Recruit Holdings Co Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (60)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
91 Outperform | ¥260.17B | 17.01 | 33.17% | 5.62% | 2.95% | 19.02% | |
82 Outperform | ¥25.96T | 45.46 | 36.23% | 0.14% | 9.31% | 43.87% | |
82 Outperform | ¥181.15B | 19.38 | ― | 5.00% | 12.35% | 28.70% | |
76 Outperform | ¥668.96B | 14.76 | 20.63% | 4.25% | 9.70% | 30.96% | |
67 Neutral | ¥50.34B | 8.62 | ― | 4.57% | 10.53% | -14.77% | |
60 Neutral | $48.67B | 4.58 | -11.27% | 4.14% | 2.83% | -41.78% | |
45 Neutral | ¥54.51B | -23.73 | -1.80% | 1.03% | 0.31% | 70.47% |
* Communication Services Sector Average
JP:6098
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Recruit Holdings Co Corporate Events
Recruit Holdings Details Progress of Large-Scale Share Buyback Program
Oct 1, 2026
Recruit Holdings has reported progress on its ongoing share repurchase program, buying 2,702,500 shares of its common stock for about 43.2 billion yen on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in September 2026. These purchases form part of a broader capital al...
Recruit Holdings to Book ¥296.4 Billion in Subsidiary Dividends in FY 2026
Sep 2, 2026
Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd. said it will book 296.4 billion yen in dividends from consolidated subsidiaries as operating revenue in its non-consolidated accounts for the fiscal year ending March 2027. The payouts will come from RGF OHR USA, Inc., R...
Recruit Advances Share Buyback, Repurchases Over 13.6 Million Shares
Sep 1, 2026
Recruit Holdings reported progress on its ongoing share repurchase program, confirming it bought 568,900 common shares in August 2026 for about 7.23 billion yen via market purchases on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. These buybacks form part of a broade...
Recruit Holdings Lifts FY2026 Outlook After Record Q1 Earnings
Aug 7, 2026
Recruit Holdings reported record first-quarter fiscal 2026 results, with revenue, EBITDA+S and basic earnings per share all surpassing initial expectations. The strong performance was driven particularly by the HR Technology segment, which benefit...
Recruit Holdings Outlines FY2026 Q1 Results and Confirms HR Tech Leadership
Aug 7, 2026
Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd. released its consolidated financial results for the first quarter of FY2026, covering the period from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027. The company clarified that all comparisons are made year over year and that figures f...
Recruit Holdings Lifts FY2026 Guidance After Strong First-Quarter Earnings
Aug 7, 2026
Recruit Holdings reported strong results for the three months ended June 30, 2026, with revenue rising 18.9% year on year to ¥1,045.3 billion and operating income jumping 66.1% to ¥255.4 billion. Profit attributable to owners of the pare...
Recruit Holdings Reports Progress on ¥350 Billion Share Buyback Program
Aug 3, 2026
Recruit Holdings has disclosed the latest progress of its ongoing share repurchase program, reporting that it bought back 6,021,300 shares of its common stock on the Tokyo Stock Exchange between July 1 and July 31, 2026, for a total of about ¥...
Recruit Holdings Finalizes Terms for Series 11 Executive Stock Options
Jul 27, 2026
Recruit Holdings has set the final terms for its Series 11 stock options to be granted to four Directors of the Board, excluding independents, and three Senior Vice Presidents. The program covers 5,937 options in total, with each option exercisabl...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.