Nomura starts fiscal year 2027 with 39% net profit gain in Q1

Nomura Holdings Inc. posted a robust 39% year-on-year gain in net profit to ￥145.6 billion for the fiscal first quarter ended June 30 on the back of increased interest in capital markets investment.

The investment bank's performance got support from all its segments — wealth management, investment management, wholesale and banking. Particularly, its investment management and wholesale operations more than doubled in pretax profit year over year for the most recent three months, according to a company statement.

"We drew customer interest amid stock markets that hit record highs," Hiroyuki Moriuchi, CFO, said during a July 29 conference call. "Our [four] operations were well balanced."

Japanese stocks rallied as Sanae Takaichi's government has embraced an expansionary fiscal policy since she took office as prime minister in October. These included cuts in taxes and steps to spur corporate capital investments. The Nikkei Stock Average Index jumped 30.3% during the April-to-June period to 70,062 points. The S&P 500 Index also gained 14% during the same period.

Global markets may lag

However, Moriuchi is not optimistic about the global markets in the coming months, saying "geopolitical risks are growing and the market volatility may remain high."

Nomura's wholesale operations, the biggest among the four segments, posted a 123% gain year on year in pretax profit to ￥93.3 billion for the three months to June, the highest since its business was launched in April of 2010. Of the core operations, its global markets business cashed in on robust fixed income that grew 12% year on year in revenue and equities with 83% growth, while its investment banking business gained 33% in revenue, getting support from corporate growth investment in Japan.

The company's investment management segment reported a 109% year-over-year surge in pretax profit to ￥45.0 billion. Assets under management grew to a record-high of ￥156.4 trillion as at the end of June, up from ￥94.3 trillion a year ago. Alternative investment seeking higher return also climbed to a record high of ￥3.805 trillion, up from ￥2.658 trillion a year earlier. The growing assets "reflected healthy stock markets," said Moriuchi.

The wealth management segment also showed strong performance with an 83% jump in pretax profit to ￥71.1 billion for the fiscal first quarter, while its banking segment, set up in April of 2025, posted a modest 1% growth in pretax profit to ￥3.6 billion for the same period.

Meanwhile, Nomura's non-interest expenses, including labor cost, expanded 31% year on year to ￥475.2 billion for the April-to-June quarter.