Hello everyone. Now it's time, so let us start. SCREEN Holdings 2025 March third quarter's financial results reporting session will begin now. Now I would like to introduce our presenters: Representative Director, President, CEO, Toshio Hiroe. Mr. Hiroe. T hank you for having me today. And Representative Director, CFO, Yoichi Kondo. I am Kondo. Thank you. And on top of CEO and CFO, we have relevant two directors: Senior Corporate Strategy Officer, Masato Goto. I am Goto. Thank you. Senior Financial Strategy Officer, Akihiko Miyagawa. I am Miyagawa. Thank you. At the beginning, our President, Hiroe, is going to talk about our delayed submission of the interim securities report.
We sincerely apologize for the concern and confusion this has caused to our stakeholders, including shareholders and investors. I would like to give you some report of the facts. First of all, the results are from October 14th. The independent conclusions from the audit was attached to the interim financial report that we have submitted to the local finance bureau, and it was accepted, and on the 13th of February, the 2025 March third quarter's interim financial results flash report was also submitted with the review report from audit firm, and as to the special investigation committee report, on the 10th of January, the report was accepted by board meeting or board, and actually, there was some improper treatment of numbers partially after viewing the report. However, the scope is limited, and also the significance in terms of the financial amount was limited. Therefore, we decided not to revise the past year's account settlement, and publication of this report is scheduled on the 14th of January. Now, about the measures to prevent recurrence.
On the 10th of January this year, we launched the project team to formulate measures to prevent recurrence. So basically, in the special investigations committee's report, we now realize that there has been some gap between the field operation and the profit recognition standards, and also the compliance awareness must have been suboptimal. So in order to address these problems, we are now looking into the possible countermeasures. So in the end of February, we are planning to publish the countermeasures against recurrences. So when we do so, we are also planning to announce the plan of the NLPF. Now, we would like to move on to the consolidated financial results report. And the presenter, Mr. Kondo, has reviewed the report about the financial results.
The third quarter's consolidated results, year-on-year, we were able to achieve both increase of the revenue and the operating profit. The ordinary profit and net profit across the board, we were able to accomplish the record high SPE. It drove these positive results. So is the GA and FT; they are trending very solid, and as to SPE, the revenue and the profit increased year-on-year and marked the record high revenue and operating profit and OP margin. Equity ratio was 61.4%. Now, the numbers, this is the third quarter cumulative numbers. The revenue was JPY 459.9 billion, operating profit JPY 100.6 billion, OP margin 21.9%, ordinary income JPY 102.3 billion, and net profit JPY 69.5 billion. The year-on-year difference is JPY 112.1 billion increase in terms of the revenue, and the operating profit up by JPY 36.9 billion, ordinary income up by JPY 37.6 billion, net profit up by JPY 24.9 billion.
Sales by destinations: 12% Japan, 14% Taiwan, 47% China, Korea 7%, 6% other Asia, North America 9%, and Europe 5%. Now, for the sales spread or breakdown by segments, SPE 84.8%, GA 7.6%, and FT 5.6%, PE 1.5%. Now, third quarter single company numbers. The SPE revenue JPY 154.8 billion, and operating profit JPY 41.9 billion, OP margin 27.1%, GA JPY 13.7 billion, OP JPY 1.2 billion, OP margin 9.2%, FT JPY 10.2 billion revenue, and JPY 1.2 billion OP, and 12.4% OP margin, and PE JPY 2.6 billion revenue, - JPY 100 million of the OP, and the OP margin - 4.3%. Now, this is the QoQ SPE increase of revenue by JPY 38 billion, and OP increased by JPY 11.9 billion. This was due to the increase in China and Korea. As for GA, increase in sales by JPY 900 million, profit is flat.
The current business is trending positively, mainly in the US, and fixed cost has increased. LCD increase of revenue by JPY 800 million, the profit increased by JPY 900 million. OLED LCD, both solid. PE - JPY 300 million in revenue, - JPY 200 million in profit. The recovery of the cutting-edge demand is delayed, and post-sales is solid. Now, year-on-year, this is the third quarter's cumulative numbers. SPE revenue JPY 383.9 billion, operating profit JPY 100.9 billion, OP margin 26.3%. GA revenue JPY 39 billion, OP JPY 3.2 billion, and OP margin 8.4%. FT revenue JPY 24.8 billion, the OP JPY 1.3 billion, OP margin 5.5%. PE revenue JPY 9.6 billion, and operating profit is JPY 500 million. SPE had a big increase in revenue and profit, mainly in China. By 1.3%, increase mixed also positive.
GA revenue increased, but profit decreased, and recurring business is solid. Fixed cost has increased as well as increased. And FT, there are large increases in both revenue and profit. LCD OLED both increased, and cost and activities has contributed to the increase of the profit. PE, here - JPY 800 million for the revenue, - JPY 700 million of the profit, and we expect the increase of the equipment demand next year. The balance sheet, the asset remains the same. Total asset remained unchanged. The cash decreased due to the transfer to the certificates of deposit. The total net asset amounted to JPY 415.9 billion, and the equity ratio improved at 61.4%. And for the cash flow, the third quarter operating cash flow is JPY 10.9 billion. The free cash flow is JPY 8 billion, and then the financing cash flow is JPY 12 billion negative.
And then, in the Q1Q, the cash flow declined the award advances received relating to the Chinese customers, and also interim income taxes payment. And so, in full year, the cash can be generated as much as the operating profit. And then, the analysis of operating income growth: the cumulative last year [was] JPY 36.6 billion. And the sales and capacity utilization were positive by JPY 46.5 billion, and the profitability JPY 1.5 billion, and the fixed cost JPY 12 billion- , and expense rate of JPY 1 billion, and then the result was JPY 100.6 billion. And then, the increase in sales and capacity utilization is attributable to SPE and FT. And then, the increase in the fixed cost is mainly due to growth investment in SPE, labor cost, depreciation, amortization, R&D expenses, and expense rates impacted [by] GA and PE, and the yen [depreciation]. So, I believe that was from me.
Thank you, Mr. Kondo. Now, the CEO Hiroe is going to talk about the business environment and outlook. Ms. Hiroe, please.
I'm going to talk about the business environment and outlook. First, about the business environment, SPE, the equipment, there is a trend of accelerating capital investments in cutting-edge semiconductors and by Chinese clients. As for the semiconductors, PC, smartphone, servers, investment, the growth rate has been slowing down, and but anyway, all of them are making the positive growth, and on the memory devices, the AI accelerator is driving the growth, and as for GA, the business environment remains steady, particularly in the U.S., mainly POD. And the recurring business is also showing a stable progress. As for FT, the OLED has driven the growth, but the investment in the LCDs remains steady, and we aim for profit growth next year as well.
As for PE, despite the challenging performance this fiscal year, the various inquiries for next year gradually begin to arrive. As for the business outlook, this fiscal year, the full year forecast has been revised further upward from October announcement. The sales, the Operating income, ordinary income, net income, all of them expected to hit the record highs for the fourth consecutive fiscal year, and the year-end dividend forecast has been also revised up to JPY 163 per share. Total annual dividend is projected to be record high at JPY 283 per share. SPE business overview, I'll start from SPE market trends and outlook. In calendar year 2024, expected to end with around 9% growth. In the calendar year 2025, we expect around 6% growth. Concerning the foundry, we expect the expansion of the AI market, especially the cutting-edge node investment is expected to be accelerated.
As for the memory, the growth is driven by the AI-related investments, and this trend will continue in CY 2025 as well. Investment trends by application. Concerning the foundry, the investments in cutting-edge nodes and advanced packaging are progressing steadily, and with regard to logic, the investments are going to be focusing on cutting-edge development, and with regard to memory, the AI demand drives the growth, and the investments for HBM are surely continued, and about the image devices, the industry-leading company and Chinese clients are showing the signs of resuming investments in power devices and others. The demand recovery is slowing down more than we had expected. Talking about the China markets, the investment plans continue to be brought forward, and going forward, investments are expected to gradually stabilize, and our expectations have not changed. Next, SPE composition of equipment sales by applications.
The Q3, in comparison on the Q2, the foundry increased significantly. The flash also rose. And the Q3Q cumulative year-on-year, the ratio of sales to flash rose significantly. And talking about the post-sales, the overall sales increased. Therefore, the ratio of sales decreased. However, the actual sales amount remained at the same level. In October, the balance between first half and the second half was not announced, but more than we had expected, we are on the positive side. And then the leading-edge investment and the Chinese investment requested to be accelerated. We were able to record the sales due to these factors. And the composition of sales by destination. If we compare the second quarter and third quarter, as I mentioned earlier, the startup was accelerated. Therefore, the ratio of sales to China increased significantly, accounting for 49%.
And the semiconductor investment for HBM, the sales to Korea has also risen. And the Q3Q cumulative year-on-year, the ratio of sales to China keeps growing at 47%. It's accounting for the big portion. And the ratio of sales to Taiwan increased due to the investment in cutting-edge area. Next, the forecast of going forward, Q3, the sales made a significant increase. And led by the investment, accelerated the cutting-edge nodes investment and investment in China. In Q4, the request from our customers to accelerate their sales has been made. Therefore, this trend will continue. And the October announcement and the January announcement difference, the second half sales forecast increased significantly from October forecast due to the request for accelerating Chinese clients and cutting-edge investment. And the productivity improvement by S-Cube 5 was accelerated so that this makes a contribution.
As for the full year results of last year and the full year estimate of this fiscal year compared, the sales ratio of a foundry is increasing, and that is driven by Taiwan and China. Logic investments focus on development. Now the investments are active. This is the sales breakdown by destination. The third quarter's actual and the fourth quarter's forecast. Actually, the third quarter, we have the increase of the China sales ratio. In the fourth quarter, it is expected to decline a little, but relatively speaking, the Taiwan's ratio is expected to grow in the fourth quarter. 32% is going to be from Taiwan. Taiwan and China's rate are going to be balanced. October's forecast and the January results, if you compare the two, due to the request of the acceleration, there's going to be a big upside, particularly by regions.
China and Taiwan's sales are expected to grow, so last year and this year, the full year comparison, including the actual amount of the sales, Chinese rate is expected to grow. And as for GA, mainly from North America, DoD is driving the sales. That's the characteristic, and along with that, becoming a business mainly on ink is trending solidly, so looking at the fourth quarter's forecast, more than half of the portion is represented by them, and at the moment, we are developing new products. So next year, we would like to release them in order to drive our top line. As for FT, as I said before, OLED is driving the business, but LCD is also solid, both for revenue and orders. We are seeing the same trend next year as well. Their display trend or display demand is expected to be solid.
In the first half, we were able to come back to the surplus. So in the second half, we are expecting to improve the profitability. So we should be able to accomplish the surplus for the first time in three years and that's our target. As for PE, given the miniaturization trend of the circuit board, the cutting-edge investment recovery seems to be taking some time. There are some trends of the recovery, but it is taking some time. And post-sales is trending solid. So we would like to grow post-sales furthermore. So this is the business forecast of this year. So as to the actual third quarter, that's been already briefed. So I would like to give you some overview. If you take a look at the far right, this is the full year forecast. Revenue is 616 billion JPY and operating profit 126 billion JPY.
OP margin is 20.5% or expected as the ordinary profit, JPY 127.5 billion, and net profit JPY 91.5 billion. So respectively, they are overshooting the budget. So we have made the upward revision. SPE is driving the growth. SPE's revenue is JPY 510 billion. Operating profit is JPY 130 billion. OP margin is 25.5%. And so compared with the previous forecast, revenue-wise, there is an increase by JPY 37 billion. As to GA, the revenue is JPY 51.5 billion. Operating profit is JPY 3.5 billion. OP margin target is 6.8%. Again, in terms of the revenue, we are increasing by JPY 2.5 billion. As for FT, revenue is JPY 37 billion. So some customer projects are to be postponed to the next year. On the other hand, in terms of the profit, JPY 2.5 billion is expected, and OP margin is 6.8%.
PE revenue is JPY 14.5 billion, and OP is JPY 1 billion, and OP margin is 6.9%. We are struggling. The third quarter was negative, but in the fourth quarter, we would like to improve. As a result, we are going to work hard to accomplish those full year forecasts and other adjustments, including the development in holding revenue of JPY 3 billion, and the OP is - JPY 11 billion. These are not changed from the previous forecast, and we are aiming to accomplish these numbers for the full year. Now, R&D expenses and CapEx and depreciation and amortization. R&D, just like the previous report, we are planning JPY 33 billion. As for CapEx, depreciation is not progressing. Some projects were postponed. Therefore, the forecast is JPY 28 billion. So this number was revised slightly. As to depreciation and amortization, it is JPY 12.5 billion.
These are the targets we are going to accomplish. As for the R&D, basically, there is the progress according to the schedule. Mainly in SPE, we are going to implement the strategic investments, but we also are going to invest in the new businesses as well. Particularly advanced packaging area, strategically, we would like to proceed with the investment. As for CapEx, it is going to be heavier in the second half. Again, mainly in SPE, R&D, and the manufacturing equipment are invested in Hikone, new building. This is a hydrogen-related building, and this is scheduled to be completed. These are the scope of the CapEx investment. This is the profit analysis comparing last year and this year. Last year, it was JPY 94.1 billion. The revenue increase and utilization ratio has added JPY 47 billion and profitability + JPY 2 billion.
The fixed costs capital is negative -JPY 18 billion, and the forex is + JPY 1 billion. We are forecasting JPY 126 billion of operating profit. Increase of the revenue and the utilization rate is driven by SPE and FT. Majority is actually contributed by SPE. As to profitability, the positive factor is the SPE. It is driving the last number. As to the increase of the fixed cost, again, SPE is the main factor. FT in new business is making the intensive investment as well, but they are both important investments for growth, and they are including the labor cost, depreciation, and R&D expenses. As for dividend, March 2025 year's dividend forecast is JPY 163 per share. This is the upward revision. And therefore, the full year dividend is going to be JPY 283, and this is going to be the record high.
So the consolidated dividend payout ratio target is 30%. So if you do the math, I think you'll be able to come up with these numbers. And other topics, they are included in the materials. Feel free to take a look at them when you have time.
Thank you, Ms. Hiroe. Now, we'll have a question- and- answer session. And the first is Yoshida-san of CLSA Securities.
Thank you, Yoshida of CLSA Securities. The quarter wonderful financial results. And then as for the WFE forecast of 6%, I would like to ask, by application, what is the respective growth rate? And also the growth rate over China, what is your expectation? And the CY 2025, if you divide the first half and the second half, what is the height of the mountain? As for the WFE, the forecast, I would like to ask you. Hiroe is going to answer to your question. The forecast for the 2025, okay?
Yes. As for the forecast for the 2025, the foundry is expected to be very strong. We expect the foundry is going to drive the growth. Taiwan Foundry is the main one, but the Chinese foundry will also be another factor to grow. The logic is expected to be slow a little bit. The DRAM in the memory, the investment is expected to be steady. The NAND in the second half is expected to pick up. The weak area is the power area. The investment in power is expected to decrease. The entire Chinese market, it is expected to be stabilized.
Next fiscal year, especially the first half of the next fiscal year, the WFE follows a calendar year, but our first half of fiscal year, the Chinese market is expected to be steady. For the second half, there might be some adjustment gradually. Throughout the year, the calendar year 2025, it's almost the same as 2024 in our expectations. What about the magnitude of the first half and the second half? In the first half, the orders have come into sight. Therefore, we expect it to be steady. In the second half, it's a little bit uncertain. Having said that, the sum amount of orders are expected to be the same. Therefore, so first half and the second half, the first half or so is expected to be stronger according to the current situation. Thank you.
The second point, in the mid-term management plan, the growth investment progress, and depending on the situation, you are going to make the flexible share buyback. And then in comparison to the forecast, the capital investment is a little decreased. And then the performance is quite good. And under current situation, what is your idea of the shareholder return for the next fiscal year? In our policy, the 30% payout ratio will be maintained. While keeping that flexible, we are going to conduct share buybacks. And that is our policy, which was announced. And the contents of investments are being scrutinized. The various things have been visualized. And so accordingly, we would like to make a release to you internally when we have come inside, and then we would take some actions. Thank you. That's all.
Thank you, Mr. Yoshida. Next is the Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities, Mr. Wadaki.
This is Wadaki speaking. That was an impressive financial result. My first question, so the cleaning equipment seems to be doing extremely well. So what's the reason behind that? Compared with other equipment, it is doing especially well. So if you have any analysis, could you share the results of that?
Let me take that question. So as for the cleaning equipment, since we mentioned in the previous hour, the more the miniaturization investment goes on, then more benefit we receive. Another point, advanced packaging area. In one sense, it requires some special cleaning process, and therefore, we can collaborate with them, and we are commercializing our special technologies, and that is now leading or leading up to the business results. So that is our strength. So we are with the foundry customers. We are moving forward together, and that is actually driving our performance.
So how much of the percentage of the revenue did you make from the cleaning equipment for the packaging application this year and next year?
We are still looking into the numbers, and we are not yet announcing and disclosing the numbers. So we are still reviewing the numbers. So at some point of time in the future, we should be able to share the information.
I'm sorry. My second question, I think this is related to Mr. Yoshida's question, not just your company, but to all the equipment manufacturers are receiving the request of the acceleration from China, and the revenue to China is basically very profitable. So next year, there could be some negative backlash. I understand that you have some visibility in terms of the revenue, but I am also still worried in the second half next year. And also, the mix is going to be affected. So how will it impact on the product profitability improvement?
Like you said, right, there is the acceleration of the project from China, and those are the projects with a high profitability for us. So this time around, this has really contributed to the increase of the profitability. And towards the next year, that is going to be influenced. So we will have to take on new measures to improve the profitability. We can't negate the fact that the business mix is going to be negative or is going to be worsened next year. However, our profitability standing has improved to some extent, particularly S-Cube 6 and other Hikone plants. Various initiatives are now contributing to the profitability. So I think that we'll be able to deliver the satisfactory profitability next year as well.
Very clear. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Wadaki. And Mr. Shimamoto of Okasan Securities, please go ahead.
Thank you. My name is Shimamoto of Okasan Securities. I'd like to ask about the WFE. I wasn't able to join the first half. I'm sorry if you have already talked about. I'm sorry about that. But how the direction by application, what would be the growth rate, respectively, foundry, memory, DRAM, and NAND, and also Chinese market? Would you give us more details?
The respective growth of each application is under scrutiny. Therefore, I cannot talk about the detailed numbers, but the strongest growth is expected to be foundry. Foundry, the investment themselves in the cutting-edge field, it's going to increase. And as I answered previously, the investment in the miniaturization would give us positive aspects, and that will be the driver. And the ratio of China is expected to decrease a little bit, and then that will become a sort of offset.
The major one is those things. It's common to WFE, it's a common trend to WFE. The investment in memories, DRAM-related investment is expected to pick up a little bit. The NAND as well, we expect some increase. As for the numbers, we are going to examine further so that I can talk to you later. Let me check in the question of Yoshida-san. As for China, the last year and this year, I heard that the same level.
What was the same level?
I'm sorry. According to the WFE, the same level. The our share of those is a little bit decreased. The WFE, I mean the same level in terms of the monetary value or ratio, the compositional ratio. So the monetary value is same level. Sorry, we haven't examined in detail. And the second point, in relation to this, the concept for next fiscal year, you outperformed the WFE this year. And then you were very strong in the foundry. I think outperform is okay, but two consecutive years, is it really true to make such a significant outperform?
And then before the next fiscal year, what is the probability of outperforming the WFE? Talking about the next fiscal year, we are still under study. And so at the next occasion, I would like to give you details. And for the sales, which was expected to be made the next fiscal year, has been shifted this fiscal year. It was accelerated. Therefore, by that amount, the forecast for next fiscal year, there is a somewhat decrease. But we are considering the 10% growth. We talked about it in the last announcement. However, we would like to achieve that level. However, our forecast is same level or higher. We are going to scrutinize the budget, and then we would like to make an update next time. Thank you very much.
That's all.
Thank you, Shimamoto-san. Now, next is Mr. Nakamura from Goldman Sachs. Go ahead. Thank you very much.
Thank you. First question, as to the performance of the business this year, the third quarter's revenue was beyond JPY 150 billion. So actually, there is an increase of the production capacity, as you first anticipated. So if this strong demand continues, do you think you can continue to ship this much every quarter? And production, excuse me, the profitability in the third quarter is 27%. However, in the fourth quarter, it is going to come down to 23%. So in the current environment, what would be the average operating margin that you can accomplish?
So in terms of the production capacity, honestly speaking, it is not at the level where we can constantly sell beyond JPY 150 billion. In the third quarter, we did a lot of stretching so that we can keep up with the demand. So if we constantly have the demand for JPY 150 billion of the revenue, then it is going to be tight. So in the fourth quarter, it's JPY 120 billion expected. And therefore, it is going to give us a bit of a leeway. And SQ5 has been fully now operating. We are now improving the productivity continuously. So next year, maybe somewhere in the middle of next year, we should be able to have the production capacity that can constantly produce to achieve JPY 150 billion. So we would like to give you the updated information as per necessity.
In terms of the fourth quarter, profitability is expected to decline. It is because of the reduction of the revenue mostly. The actual profitability itself is not going to change that much. That's our anticipation. In that sense, in terms of our capability, our operating profit margin capability should be around 25%. If it is around 600 billion JPY of revenue, then there's going to be the upside. If it is around 500 billion JPY level, then the open margin could be around 25% or slightly lower than the 25% that is going to be our actual ability. Thank you.
The second question again about the way to look at the revenue of SPE business. This is a clarification question to the previous question. At the moment, next year's revenue-wise, well, you are saying that it is going to be almost the same as this year. So you are saying that it is going to be the same as the revenue performance for the year ending in March of 2025?
Yes. The March 2025 year, we are expecting to have JPY 510 billion of revenue. So either that level or higher than that is what we are aspiring for.
Thank you very much. That's all from me.
Thank you. Nakanomyo-san from Jefferies, please go ahead.
Nakanomyo from Jefferies, thank you. Sorry to ask you the similar questions, but the 2025 WFE base, the China level is same as this year. But in the Q2, the financial report, it said that China is expected to go down around 20%, if I remember correctly. And then for the three-month China sales increase. For instead of two to three months, but recently, Chinese investment, the inquiries are coming. And originally, it was expected to go down to be around the mid-30% level, but it seems to increase a little more. When you mentioned for the past two years, the new customers of China made aggressive investment. Therefore, investment plan in 2025 was not so strong. I remember you mentioned that, but recently, the situation has changed drastically. It's not that drastic, but they are a bit more active in my understanding. On the other hand, in December, the U.S. new regulation was imposed, then the many companies are listed in the Entity List. What kind of impact did that list give you?
At the moment, the comment hasn't changed from the previous time. In the U.S., Entity List company numbers have increased. However, we follow the Japanese regulation for import, I'm sorry, for export. And according to the legal guidelines, I'm talking about this. But we heard that and expect that the regulation will be tightened. But to give you some comment on that, it's a bit too early, and I'm not in the position to talk about the trend going forward. And so after the first half of 2025, you receive accelerated investment, but in the second half of 2025, including the regulations, it's still uncertain. Yes, I'm not sure about the regulations. We are talking about excluding the regulations' impact. If the regulations are newly imposed, and then based on the regulations, what kind of impact will be given, I would like to share with you when it has been cleared. And the second point, this is also a confirmation.
The previous time, WFE is expected to increase around 10%, but the WFE is 6%, and then the US company is targeting the remaining the same. And so the relatively to the WFE is because this fiscal year's result is too strong. And the WFE, we expect the WFE to land around 9%. We still have a fourth quarter. In that sense, along with the request of acceleration, we expect the increase in sales. And the third quarter, we had an increase, but in the fourth quarter, even if we capture some of the shift from the fourth quarter to the third quarter, but still we have an increase, but we get some decrease in the 25. Therefore, we expect a little lower than we had expected. And the WFE's number is a little bit tricky. And the yen-based trend is around, I think FY24 is around 25% growth.
WFE is 9%, and then the increase higher than that. Such benchmarking is not appropriate for benchmarking of the front-end focused companies in Japan. Yes, it's a bit difficult for us to make a comment because it's a fact that that is affected by the foreign exchange rate. So it's a bit difficult to talk from a viewpoint of Japanese yen. And the WFE follows the dollar base, and then they see the growth rate. And as you mentioned, the Japanese equipment manufacturers, under the current foreign exchange rate trend, it becomes lower.
Yes, thank you very much.
Thank you very much, Mr. Nakanomyo. And next is SMBC Nikko Securities, Hanaya-san.
I am Hanaya from SMBC Nikko Securities. Can you hear me?
Yes.
Well, the time is tight. So first question, I would like to ask about China. So your assumption is based on not really including the regulations. However, the customers are worried about the regulations, and they are asking for the acceleration, and the shipment is now happening in the third quarter instead of the fourth quarter. So they are worried about the risk of no longer being able to purchase the products from you later. Do you think that is the situation? Have you been discussing that?
The backdrop? Honestly speaking, we don't know, but probably what you have said could be right, that assumption. So we don't know yet what kind of regulations will be implemented. So earlier the better could be their mentality. That is just our assumption.
Thank you. Second question. So the third quarter's performance was very strong. So if you take a look at the QoQ, the revenues increased and profit increased. Compared with the revenue increase, profit increase was not as strong, so in the second half, I think you are going to increase your profit in the second half. Is that why?
The evaluation value, well, unfortunately, that is slid to the fourth quarter. That's right, so it is planned to be posted in the fourth quarter. In terms of the profitability in the third quarter, I would like to ask Nakanomyo-san to make a comment. As to the profitability in the third quarter, the revenue increase was much stronger in the third quarter compared with the profit increase. I think that was the question. Is this the correct understanding of the question, Hanaya-san? Yes. Okay. So Q1, the revenue increased by JPY 38 billion, profit increase. Profit is increasing a lot, but it is JPY 11.9 billion. I thought that it could have been higher.
Okay, understood.
The first quarter and second quarter, customer mix is the reason, and that's why profitability is not as strong as the revenue increase. That's all. The second quarter was better. Is that what you mean? Yes, that's correct. If the Chinese sales to China increased, in the second quarter and third quarter, the China sales representation has increased. However, the mix other than China was worsened. Or is it the mix change within China business? Within the mix in China, the new companies' profitability is high, but if we have more business with the existing customers, then it is negative impact in terms of the mix and profitability. And there has been acceleration of the cutting-edge business. Therefore, that had a slightly negative impact on the profitability.
Understood. Thank you. That's all from me.
Thank you, Mr. Hanaya. It's time. So we'll conclude the consolidated business results and forecast by 25 March, third quarter, ending 31st of 2024. Thank you very much indeed for joining today at this point of this discussion.
Thank you so much.