# Recruit Holdings (6098.JP)

Canonical: https://gigainvestors.com/s/6098.JP

Analysis as of: 2026-10-15T07:10:48.384Z. Financial observations: FY2013–FY2026.

Listing currency: JPY. Reporting currency: JPY.

## Verdict

A wonderful business at too high a price

Quality tests for Buy: pass (profit record: pass; earnings resilience is evidence only). Published buy qualification: no.

Share price: JPY 18,380.00 per share; close as of 2026-10-15.

Estimated value: low JPY 3,499.23 per share, central JPY 3,919.46 per share, high JPY 4,478.88 per share. Buy at or below the central value JPY 3,919.46 per share. Valuation as of 2026-10-15T07:10:48.384Z; scenarios are not confidence intervals.

Expected annual return: 4.3% at the stated quote. About 4.3% a year at today's price (required return 10.0%). required return 10.0% a year (10% floor; JP 10-year bond 2.9% + 4 points).

## Checklist

### understandable: pass

- 2 revenue declines in the last 10 years (informational)

- Financial history: 10 years

- Years with declining revenue: 2

- Years with a net loss: 0

- Operating margin variation: 0.29×

Chart: Operating margin; fiscal year observations.

- FY2017: 0.07×

- FY2018: 0.09×

- FY2019: 0.10×

- FY2020: 0.09×

- FY2021: 0.07×

- FY2022: 0.13×

- FY2023: 0.10×

- FY2024: 0.12×

- FY2025: 0.14×

- FY2026: 0.17×

### moat: pass

- ROIC, median of available years: 63.2%

- ROIC, second-lowest year: 41.9%

- Typical minus recent gross margin: -3.0 pp

- Typical gross margin (annual median): 55.7%

- Recent gross margin (lower of latest and 3-year median): 58.6%

- Years with nonpositive capital: 0

- Capital spending / revenue: 2.4%

- ROIC including acquisitions, ten-year median: 27.3%

Chart: ROIC excluding acquisitions; fiscal year observations.

- FY2017: 25.8%

- FY2018: 46.4%

- FY2019: 51.9%

- FY2020: 51.5%

- FY2021: 41.9%

- FY2022: 92.4%

- FY2023: 79.0%

- FY2024: 94.4%

- FY2025: 74.5%

- FY2026: 99.0%

### economics: pass

- Owner earnings / net income, 5-yr: 1.01×

- Cash conversion uses consolidated totals: No

- Owner earnings, five-year total: JPY 1.84T

- Net income, five-year total: JPY 1.83T

- Return on incremental invested capital: >100%

- Working capital / revenue, annual change: -0.3 pp

- Working capital / revenue, change between three-year averages: -2.2 pp

- Working capital / revenue, final three-year average: 5.5%

Chart: Annual owner cash / profit; fiscal year observations.

- FY2022: 1.05×

- FY2023: 1.00×

- FY2024: 1.00×

- FY2025: 1.00×

- FY2026: 1.00×

### management: pass

- Historical market-dollar context (not the management verdict): 2017 to 2026 (9 years)

- buybacks unrelated to price (informational)

- ROIC first 3 years vs last 3 years: 46.4% vs 94.4%

- Per-share earnings: 81.33 to 271.44 (three-year endpoint medians)

- Management verdict uses per-share economic progress: Yes

- Ordinary dilution, 10-year annual growth: 9.7%

- Ordinary dilution, 5-year annual growth: -2.9%

- Market cap gain: JPY 6.09T

- Cumulative retained earnings: JPY 718B

- Diluted shares, 10-year annual growth: 9.7%

- Diluted shares, 5-year annual growth: -2.9%

- $1 test, starting fiscal year: FY2017

- $1 test, ending fiscal year: FY2026

- Per-share value growth: 16.3%

- Per-share value change: JPY 190.11

- Per-share value, starting three-year median: JPY 81.33

- Per-share value, ending three-year median: JPY 271.44

- Average buyback yield: 1.0%

- Buyback history: 1 years

- Debt-funded buybacks: No

- Acquisition spending: JPY 421B

- Cumulative net income, 10 years: JPY 2.60T

- ROIC, first three-year median: 46.4%

- ROIC, last three-year median: 94.4%

Chart: Earnings per share; fiscal year observations.

- FY2017: JPY 81.33

- FY2018: JPY 90.79

- FY2019: JPY 104.31

- FY2020: JPY 108.27

- FY2021: JPY 79.83

- FY2022: JPY 181.68

- FY2023: JPY 168.59

- FY2024: JPY 225.99

- FY2025: JPY 271.44

- FY2026: JPY 349.78

### accounting: pass

- Sloan accruals: -6.2%

- Receivables to sales index (DSRI): 1.09×

- Restructuring years, last five: 0

- Stock compensation / operating cash flow: 9.5%

- Earnings backed by cash: Yes

- Operating cash / earnings: 1.35×

- Accounting red flags: 0

- Goodwill and intangibles / equity: 0.45×

Chart: Sloan accruals; fiscal year observations.

- FY2017: -1.2%

- FY2018: -2.7%

- FY2019: -5.9%

- FY2020: -6.2%

- FY2021: -7.1%

- FY2022: -5.9%

- FY2023: -6.0%

- FY2024: -5.8%

- FY2025: -7.3%

- FY2026: -6.2%

## Holders

## Price story

Price needs cash profits to grow 21.9% a year for ten years · sales +3.9%

Story as of 2026-10-16T10:00:14.398Z; price observation 2026-10-15.

Price needs cash profits to grow 21.9% a year for ten years

### Sales · FY2025–2026

sales +3.9%; source https://disclosure2dl.edinet-fsa.go.jp/searchdocument/pdf/S100YDHL.pdf; observed 2026-06-19.

- FY2017: JPY 1.94T 

- FY2018: JPY 2.17T 

- FY2019: JPY 2.31T 

- FY2020: JPY 2.40T 

- FY2021: JPY 2.27T 

- FY2022: JPY 2.87T 

- FY2023: JPY 3.43T 

- FY2024: JPY 3.42T 

- FY2025: JPY 3.56T 

- FY2026: JPY 3.70T 

### Gross margin · FY2026

gross margin 59.2%; source https://disclosure2dl.edinet-fsa.go.jp/searchdocument/pdf/S100YDHL.pdf; observed 2026-06-19.

- FY2017: 44.3% 

- FY2018: 46.7% 

- FY2019: 50.6% 

- FY2020: 53.9% 

- FY2021: 50.5% 

- FY2022: 57.5% 

- FY2023: 58.2% 

- FY2024: 57.5% 

- FY2025: 58.6% 

- FY2026: 59.2% 

## Owner memo

Memo as of 2026-10-16T08:06:05.509Z.

### How it makes money

Annual sales are JPY 3.7 trillion.

- Source: https://disclosure2dl.edinet-fsa.go.jp/searchdocument/pdf/S100YDHL.pdf (filed 2026-06-19); FY2026: revenue 3697351000000; grossProfit 2188195000000; margin = grossProfit / revenue.

### Why customers stay

Margins ranged from 57.5% to 59.2% during 2024–26; it earns 63.2% on its capital.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2024: grossProfit / revenue = 57.5%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2025: grossProfit / revenue = 58.6%.

- Source: https://disclosure2dl.edinet-fsa.go.jp/searchdocument/pdf/S100YDHL.pdf (filed 2026-06-19); FY2026: grossProfit / revenue = 59.2%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); 10-year return on capital observations [[2017,0.25758346547207017],[2018,0.46419580480901285],[2019,0.5191011874004152],[2020,0.5147916113499795],[2021,0.41866538737740283],[2022,0.9244382711594961],[2023,0.7900242793065106],[2024,0.9437662799103818],[2025,0.7450905116323027],[2026,0.9900953805861467]]; median 0.6320958495163589. ROIC follows the displayed moat series; financial companies use return on tangible equity.

### Where the cash goes

Paid dividends in 10 of 10 years.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2017: growth capex 17523000000; upkeep 50095000000; owner earnings 136654000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.12822895780584542.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2018: growth capex 2767000000; upkeep 61363000000; owner earnings 151667000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.01824391594743748.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2019: growth capex 3678350716.9963226; upkeep 72086649283.00368; owner earnings 173315350716.99634. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.021223455982284214.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2020: growth capex 0; upkeep 83259000000; owner earnings 173287000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2021: growth capex 0; upkeep 58314000000; owner earnings 152221000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2022: growth capex 0; upkeep 64385000000; owner earnings 312661000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2023: growth capex 0; upkeep 76756000000; owner earnings 269769000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2024: growth capex 0; upkeep 69929000000; owner earnings 354404000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); FY2025: growth capex 0; upkeep 65257000000; owner earnings 407937000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://disclosure2dl.edinet-fsa.go.jp/searchdocument/pdf/S100YDHL.pdf (filed 2026-06-19); FY2026: growth capex 0; upkeep 62291000000; owner earnings 494524000000. Growth capex / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); Dividend observations: [[2017,28513000000],[2018,54552000000],[2019,42616000000],[2020,49268000000],[2021,40414000000],[2022,34317000000],[2023,34638000000],[2024,35374000000],[2025,35644000000],[2026,35351000000]]. Zero only counted when supported by a complete cash-flow statement.

### What could break it

"⑮ 外部事業者への依存に関するリスク" (6098 filing, Jun 2026)

- Source: https://disclosure2dl.edinet-fsa.go.jp/searchdocument/pdf/S100YDHL.pdf (filed 2026-06-19); ⑮ 外部事業者への依存に関するリスク

### What the price says

The price assumes cash profits grow 21.9% yearly over ten years.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-06-19); Ten-year compound average after fade. Initial solved rate 0.30660886753030747. Price 18380; FX 1; discount 0.1; same standard ten-year fade to terminal 0.03. FY2016 owner earnings/share -14.230877835015958 → FY2026 348.09906929194705. Closing-price date 2026-10-15.

## Monthly share-price history (JPY per share)

- 2016-11: JPY 1,455.00 per share

- 2016-12: JPY 1,563.33 per share

- 2017-01: JPY 1,648.33 per share

- 2017-02: JPY 1,836.67 per share

- 2017-03: JPY 1,893.33 per share

- 2017-04: JPY 1,876.67 per share

- 2017-05: JPY 1,956.67 per share

- 2017-06: JPY 1,931.00 per share

- 2017-07: JPY 1,909.00 per share

- 2017-08: JPY 2,191.00 per share

- 2017-09: JPY 2,437.00 per share

- 2017-10: JPY 2,776.00 per share

- 2017-11: JPY 2,647.00 per share

- 2017-12: JPY 2,800.00 per share

- 2018-01: JPY 2,659.00 per share

- 2018-02: JPY 2,592.00 per share

- 2018-03: JPY 2,644.50 per share

- 2018-04: JPY 2,527.00 per share

- 2018-05: JPY 3,030.00 per share

- 2018-06: JPY 3,066.00 per share

- 2018-07: JPY 3,055.00 per share

- 2018-08: JPY 3,387.00 per share

- 2018-09: JPY 3,792.00 per share

- 2018-10: JPY 3,037.00 per share

- 2018-11: JPY 3,123.00 per share

- 2018-12: JPY 2,662.50 per share

- 2019-01: JPY 2,912.50 per share

- 2019-02: JPY 3,114.00 per share

- 2019-03: JPY 3,161.00 per share

- 2019-04: JPY 3,329.00 per share

- 2019-05: JPY 3,468.00 per share

- 2019-06: JPY 3,594.00 per share

- 2019-07: JPY 3,718.00 per share

- 2019-08: JPY 3,219.00 per share

- 2019-09: JPY 3,286.00 per share

- 2019-10: JPY 3,611.00 per share

- 2019-11: JPY 3,962.00 per share

- 2019-12: JPY 4,099.00 per share

- 2020-01: JPY 4,304.00 per share

- 2020-02: JPY 3,758.00 per share

- 2020-03: JPY 2,796.00 per share

- 2020-04: JPY 3,182.00 per share

- 2020-05: JPY 3,710.00 per share

- 2020-06: JPY 3,682.00 per share

- 2020-07: JPY 3,268.00 per share

- 2020-08: JPY 4,026.00 per share

- 2020-09: JPY 4,160.00 per share

- 2020-10: JPY 3,970.00 per share

- 2020-11: JPY 4,400.00 per share

- 2020-12: JPY 4,321.00 per share

- 2021-01: JPY 4,542.00 per share

- 2021-02: JPY 5,281.00 per share

- 2021-03: JPY 5,401.00 per share

- 2021-04: JPY 4,939.00 per share

- 2021-05: JPY 5,555.00 per share

- 2021-06: JPY 5,470.00 per share

- 2021-07: JPY 5,629.00 per share

- 2021-08: JPY 6,500.00 per share

- 2021-09: JPY 6,832.00 per share

- 2021-10: JPY 7,572.00 per share

- 2021-11: JPY 6,901.00 per share

- 2021-12: JPY 6,972.00 per share

- 2022-01: JPY 5,595.00 per share

- 2022-02: JPY 4,819.00 per share

- 2022-03: JPY 5,414.00 per share

- 2022-04: JPY 4,818.00 per share

- 2022-05: JPY 4,734.00 per share

- 2022-06: JPY 3,995.00 per share

- 2022-07: JPY 4,953.00 per share

- 2022-08: JPY 4,483.00 per share

- 2022-09: JPY 4,161.00 per share

- 2022-10: JPY 4,590.00 per share

- 2022-11: JPY 4,329.00 per share

- 2022-12: JPY 4,177.00 per share

- 2023-01: JPY 4,144.00 per share

- 2023-02: JPY 3,704.00 per share

- 2023-03: JPY 3,650.00 per share

- 2023-04: JPY 3,824.00 per share

- 2023-05: JPY 4,290.00 per share

- 2023-06: JPY 4,563.00 per share

- 2023-07: JPY 4,933.00 per share

- 2023-08: JPY 5,220.00 per share

- 2023-09: JPY 4,609.00 per share

- 2023-10: JPY 4,333.00 per share

- 2023-11: JPY 5,505.00 per share

- 2023-12: JPY 5,963.00 per share

- 2024-01: JPY 5,927.00 per share

- 2024-02: JPY 6,044.00 per share

- 2024-03: JPY 6,680.00 per share

- 2024-04: JPY 6,902.00 per share

- 2024-05: JPY 7,948.00 per share

- 2024-06: JPY 8,607.00 per share

- 2024-07: JPY 8,658.00 per share

- 2024-08: JPY 9,047.00 per share

- 2024-09: JPY 8,705.00 per share

- 2024-10: JPY 9,533.00 per share

- 2024-11: JPY 10,385.00 per share

- 2024-12: JPY 11,145.00 per share

- 2025-01: JPY 10,930.00 per share

- 2025-02: JPY 8,800.00 per share

- 2025-03: JPY 7,657.00 per share

- 2025-04: JPY 7,942.00 per share

- 2025-05: JPY 8,689.00 per share

- 2025-06: JPY 8,535.00 per share

- 2025-07: JPY 9,052.00 per share

- 2025-08: JPY 8,579.00 per share

- 2025-09: JPY 7,963.00 per share

- 2025-10: JPY 7,708.00 per share

- 2025-11: JPY 8,006.00 per share

- 2025-12: JPY 8,847.00 per share

- 2026-01: JPY 8,100.00 per share

- 2026-02: JPY 6,866.00 per share

- 2026-03: JPY 6,526.00 per share

- 2026-04: JPY 7,303.00 per share

- 2026-05: JPY 10,570.00 per share

- 2026-06: JPY 11,330.00 per share

- 2026-07: JPY 12,550.00 per share

- 2026-08: JPY 18,215.00 per share

- 2026-09: JPY 16,795.00 per share

- 2026-10: JPY 18,305.00 per share

## Annual estimated value (JPY per share)

- FY2021: low JPY 1,337.35 per share, central JPY 1,483.57 per share, high JPY 1,678.23 per share

- FY2022: low JPY 1,762.10 per share, central JPY 1,953.40 per share, high JPY 2,208.06 per share

- FY2023: low JPY 2,272.89 per share, central JPY 2,529.44 per share, high JPY 2,856.76 per share

- FY2024: low JPY 3,017.50 per share, central JPY 4,017.97 per share, high JPY 4,600.55 per share

- FY2025: low JPY 3,823.66 per share, central JPY 5,252.21 per share, high JPY 6,084.05 per share

- FY2026: low JPY 3,555.89 per share, central JPY 3,982.93 per share, high JPY 4,551.41 per share

Historical values use today's bond yield for every fiscal year

Historical values use today's FX rate into trading currency for every fiscal year

Historical values use current restated fundamentals and current commodity classification; they are not point-in-time estimates

Prior published observations retained from 2026-10-15T07:10:48.384Z where newer inputs omit a numeric field or fiscal period.

## Sources

[Original EDINET filing](https://disclosure2dl.edinet-fsa.go.jp/searchdocument/pdf/S100YDHL.pdf); period 2026-03-31, filed 2026-06-19.

Estimates depend on assumptions and are not guarantees or investment advice. Underlying data remains subject to its source licenses; public reading does not grant bulk redistribution rights.

## Reported holder observations