(April 14): Seven & i Holdings Co forecast operating profit and revenue for the current year that missed analyst estimates, adding pressure on the company to find new avenues for growth after divesting stakes in its supermarket and banking units.

Operating profit will rise 0.7% to ¥424 billion (RM13.17 billion) for the 12 months ending February 2026, falling short of the average analyst forecast of ¥459.6 billion. During the same period, it expects sales to come in at ¥10.72 trillion, a 10% fall from a year earlier. That compares with the ¥11.61 trillion estimated by analysts.

Seven & i said it expects domestic convenience store sales to rise 5.1% this fiscal year, while seeing revenue from overseas convenience stores fall 3.6%.

While the Japanese economy’s gradual recovery is seen boosting wages, investments and tourism demand, growing uncertainty over trade policy remains a key risk to the outlook, the retailer said in a statement Wednesday.

In a climate of economic uncertainty, “the retailer that can move quickly to adjust to bring value to customers is the retailer that’s going to win”, CEO Stephen Dacus said. “Improving our speed to become faster than our competitors will be a huge competitive advantage.”

The guidance miss adds to the pressure on the operator of 7-Eleven stores to do more to grow its business amid a takeover bid by Canadian retailer Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. The Japanese retailer has already taken a series of steps, including selling the underperforming superstore business, divesting its banking unit and announcing a share buyback, to unlock shareholder value.

The company Wednesday announced it will purchase ¥600 billion worth of shares through February as part of the ¥2 trillion buyback plan it announced last month.

Seven & i’s stock is still reflecting some uncertainty given minimal progress on Couche-Tard’s offer, especially after a management buyout effort led by the founding Ito family failed. The retailer’s market valuation is hovering around ¥4.8 trillion, significantly lower than Couche-Tard’s offer of ¥7.39 trillion.

Seven & i and Couche-Tard have agreed to seek a third-party buyer for overlapping retail outlets as a prerequisite for takeover talks. The process, initiated by the Japanese retailer, is aimed at making sure that any deal won’t fall apart because of US antitrust concerns.

Fourth-Quarter Highlights:
- Operating income of ¥238.07 billion beat the estimate of ¥94.72 billion.
- Net income at ¥109.44 billion exceeded the estimate of ¥108.18 billion.
- Net sales of ¥11.83 trillion were more than double the year-ago level of ¥5.92 trillion and higher than the ¥2.82 trillion estimated by analysts.
- The company announced a dividend of ¥20 compared to ¥56.50 in the year-ago period.

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