Research

IC: Debt-free IT services firm reliant on Hitachi group work

IC CO., LTD. (4769) · Published 2026-11-10 · Beluuga AI Research Team · Independent research

Not investment advice or a solicitation. See Important disclosures below.

Business overview

  • IC CO.,LTD. provides software development and system operations services, much of it performed by engineers stationed at client sites, plus infrastructure design, IT consulting and a small range of its own products. It reports a single segment (information services) but discloses sales by two business divisions: IT Solutions (software development and system operations) and IT Services (in-house products).
  • IT Services products include the LINKET ticketing service, launched in the year to September 2026 by merging two earlier ticketing services, the iDEP skills-development system for sports and education, the TapToYou self-serve beer tap system, and communication apps for people with hearing impairments sold through the subsidiary Feat. All sales are to customers in Japan.
  • The group consists of the parent and three wholly owned subsidiaries: Silk Laboratory and its subsidiary Feat, acquired in October 2021, and Nihon Gazo Haishin of Fukuoka, acquired in April 2025. The annual securities report lists 807 group employees and 722 at the parent as of September 30, 2025.
  • The fiscal year ends in September and has been twelve months in every year shown; results are reported under Japanese GAAP (see Performance & Balance).

Investment case

  1. The company states in its annual securities report that working capital is funded from its own resources and that it does not borrow from financial institutions; the earnings release for the year to September 2026 shows no interest-bearing debt at year-end (see Performance & Balance).
  2. Shareholder returns increased in the year to September 2026: the year-end dividend was raised and included a special dividend, and the company bought back its own shares, which it did not do in the prior year. Its articles allow the board, rather than a shareholders' meeting, to decide dividends and share buybacks.
  3. Operating profit and ordinary profit rose in the year to September 2026, with IT Solutions sales growing in both software development and system operations, led by government and local authorities, telecommunications and media, and finance customers.
  4. The balance sheet includes a sizable portfolio of investment securities, which the board receives reports on as policy shareholdings; the company sold part of these holdings in the year to September 2026 and recorded gains on the sales (see Performance & Balance).

Bear case

  1. The company forecasts flat sales and lower operating, ordinary and net profit for the year to September 2027, with a sharp profit decline in the first half.
  2. IT Services, which management describes as the higher-margin business it needs to grow to reach its profit-margin target, has shrunk in each of the last two years, partly because development work for a major customer was moved into IT Solutions.
  3. The company's stated target is an ordinary-profit-to-sales ratio, and the annual securities report for the year to September 2025 states that the result for that year was below the target.
  4. Net profit fell in the year to September 2026, after the prior year benefited from a one-time gain on a retirement benefit plan revision and the current year included an impairment loss; goodwill from acquisitions also declined during the year.

Catalysts

  • The annual securities report for the year to September 2026 is scheduled for December 17, 2026, and the annual shareholders' meeting for December 18, 2026, with the dividend payable from December 21, 2026.
  • First-half results for the year to September 2027, against a company forecast of a large decline in first-half profit.
  • Progress under the medium-term plan "Growing Beyond 2028" (fiscal 2026 to fiscal 2028), which sets a policy of "selection and concentration", continued strategic investment, recovery of earlier investments and a gradual shift in the sales and profit mix toward the long-term vision "VISION 2031".

Key risks

  • The company lists dependence on Hitachi group companies, led by Hitachi Systems, Ltd., as its first business risk; Hitachi group companies are its largest customer group, and a reduction in their orders would affect results. Sales to the Hitachi group declined in the year to September 2026 while total sales rose.
  • The business model depends on hiring and retaining IT engineers, and the company states that IT engineer shortages from a shrinking labor force are expected to make the IT Solutions market harder.
  • Customer IT spending depends on the economy; a downturn could reduce orders and lead to cancellation of maintenance and operations contracts. Quality failures or information leaks could also bring rework costs and damages claims.
  • The company states it intends to use outside resources including M&A to build new businesses; it recorded an impairment loss and goodwill fell in the year to September 2026, and the largest shareholders are a scholarship foundation bearing the company name and the employee stock ownership association (see Shareholders).

Trading liquidity

Median daily trading value US$0.01mn
Average daily volume 2,333 shares

2025-10-02 to 2026-11-09 (250 trading days). Trading value is daily closing price × daily volume on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Assumptions

  • Financial figures on this page come from beluuga.ai's daily data set; trading liquidity is measured over the period shown. We do not use consensus estimates.
  • Net profit comparisons are affected by one-time items: a retirement benefit plan revision gain in the year to September 2025, and investment securities sale gains and an impairment loss in the year to September 2026.
  • The detailed narrative disclosures (risks, governance, strategy) are from the annual securities report for the year to September 2025, while the latest financial results are from the earnings release for the year to September 2026.
  • Qualitative statements are taken from the annual securities report for the year to September 2025 and the full-year earnings release for the year to September 2026.

This is independent research. No company paid for or reviewed it. We do not publish ratings, price targets or buy/sell views. Figures on the other slides of this page come from beluuga.ai's daily data set.

Important disclosures

No offer or solicitation. This material is provided for information purposes only. It is not an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any security or other financial instrument in the United States or in any other jurisdiction, and it is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security. It is not directed at, and may not be relied on by, any person in any jurisdiction where its publication or availability would be contrary to law or regulation.

Not investment advice. This material is general and impersonal. It does not take into account the investment objectives, financial situation or particular needs of any reader, and it is not tailored to any person. It is published to all readers on the same terms and on a regular basis, and no reader receives advice on the merits of any security for their own account. Readers should make their own independent decisions and consult their own legal, tax, accounting and investment advisers before making any investment.

Regulatory status. Beluuga AI, Inc. is not registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or any state securities authority as an investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, is not registered as a broker-dealer under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is not a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). It is not registered as a Financial Instruments Business Operator under Japan's Financial Instruments and Exchange Act. This material is not a research report prepared by a FINRA member firm and is not subject to FINRA Rule 2241, Regulation Analyst Certification (Regulation AC) or the other U.S. rules that govern broker-dealer research. The SEC, FINRA and the Financial Services Agency of Japan have not reviewed, approved or passed on the merits or accuracy of this material.

European Union and European Economic Area. Beluuga AI, Inc. is not authorised or supervised by any national competent authority in the European Union or the European Economic Area, including under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II). This material is not investment advice, a personal recommendation or investment research within the meaning of MiFID II, and it is not a prospectus or other offering document under the Prospectus Regulation (EU) 2017/1129. It has not been prepared in accordance with the requirements of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 (the Market Abuse Regulation) for investment recommendations and is not intended to be relied on as one.

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Securities of Japanese issuers. The securities discussed are issued by companies incorporated in Japan and listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. They may not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, and the issuers may not be subject to the periodic reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Information about these issuers may be less extensive than information about U.S. issuers, and their financial statements are prepared under Japanese GAAP, IFRS or U.S. GAAP as each issuer elects. U.S. persons may face restrictions, tax consequences and practical limits on buying, holding or selling these securities. Investments in non-U.S. securities involve risks that include currency movements, lower trading liquidity, and differences in market practice, corporate governance and legal protection.

Currency. Amounts shown in US$ are converted from Japanese yen at a mid-market rate for convenience only. They are not the amounts an investor would receive, and changes in exchange rates may cause the value of a yen-denominated investment to fall in US$ terms even if its value in yen does not.

Sources, accuracy and forward-looking statements. This material is based on the issuers' public disclosure documents and on market data, and it was prepared with the assistance of AI tools and reviewed by the Beluuga AI Research Team. We believe the sources to be reliable but do not guarantee that the information is accurate, complete or current, and the material may contain errors. Statements about the future, including catalysts and risks, are assumptions and are not guarantees; actual results may differ materially. Past performance is not a guide to future performance. The material speaks only as of its date, and we have no obligation to update it. Where the issuer's original disclosure is in Japanese, the Japanese original prevails over any English description given here.

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Overview
Information & Communication

IC CO.,LTD.

IC Co., Ltd. is an independent listed IT company providing comprehensive IT solutions and proprietary IT services across diverse industries. Its IT Solutions segment covers software development, system operations, infrastructure design and construction, and IT consulting, delivered both on-site at client facilities and in-house. Its IT Services segment offers self-developed cloud-based products including a ticketing and venue management platform ('Ticket for LINE Hybrid' and 'HINORI'), a personal ability development system ('iDEP') targeting sports and education sectors, and accessibility/communication support tools developed by its subsidiary,株式会社フィート.

Market Cap
US$49.4M
¥7.90B
EV
US$11.3M
¥1.80B
StockUS$6.65(¥1,062)▼-1.67%
US$1 = ¥159.70 (2026-11-12)
LTM EV/EBITDA
2.7
x
LTM EV/EBIT
3.1
x
LTM PER
18.7
x
LTM PBR
1.2
x
Stock vs TOPIX (1Y, base=100)vs TOPIX ▼-16.4%pt
1001
Nov 13, 25 – Nov 13, 26StockTOPIX
1Aug 18, 26Board approved share buyback
MC → EV Bridge
US$49.4M¥7.90BMarket CapUS$0.00M¥0.00B+ DebtUS$24.4M¥3.89B− CashUS$13.8M¥2.20B− Inv. Sec.US$11.3M¥1.80BEV
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Performance & Balance
Revenue 5Y (US$)
US$53.2M¥8.49B'22/9US$53.6M¥8.56B'23/9US$58.2M¥9.29B'24/9US$63.5M¥10.1B'25/9US$65.3M¥10.4B'26/9
EBITDA 5Y (US$)
US$4.25M¥0.68B'22/9US$2.90M¥0.46B'23/9US$3.21M¥0.51B'24/9US$3.73M¥0.60B'25/9US$4.21M¥0.67B'26/9
Net Income 5Y (US$)
US$3.29M¥0.53B'22/9US$2.33M¥0.37B'23/9US$2.40M¥0.38B'24/9US$3.04M¥0.49B'25/9US$2.64M¥0.42B'26/9
Capital Structure
100%
EquityD/E 0.00xDebt
Liquidity vs Debt 5Y (US$)▲ Net Cash
CashInv. Sec.Debt
US$34.3M¥5.47B'22/9US$36.2M¥5.78B'23/9US$36.5M¥5.83B'24/9US$37.6M¥6.01B'25/9US$38.0M¥6.07B'26/9
Shareholders
Top 10 hold 44.8%
1
IC Saito Ikuei-kai Foundation
15.55%
2
IC Employee Stock Ownership Association
8.15%
3
Hikari Tsushin KK Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership
4.79%
4
Scala,Inc.
3.36%
5
Haibo SHI
2.96%
6
Toru YAMADA
2.45%
7
Yoji OZAWA
2.16%
8
Hiroshi SHOJI
2.09%
9
Akihiro SUGA
1.80%
10
Seiji UENO
1.45%
Management
7 officers
Ryoji SAITO
Representative Director, President
Nov 1980 Joined the Company Apr 2004 Appointed Head of Ibaraki Development Center, Technical Sales Division Oct 2013 Appointed Head of Solution Development Division Dec 2013 Appointed Director, Head of Solution Development Division Jul 2016 Appointed Director, Head of Technical Operations Division and Head of 3rd Technical Operations Department Oct 2017 Appointed Director, Head of Business Strategy Division Dec 2017 Appointed Director, Senior Executive Officer, Head of Business Strategy Division Oct 2019 Appointed Director, President and Executive Officer Dec 2019 Appointed Representative Director, President and Executive Officer (current)
1961-11-20
Shohei MISAWA
Representative Director, Vice President
Apr 2002 Joined the Company Oct 2016 Appointed Sales Department Manager, Solution Sales Division, IT Solutions Business Unit Jun 2018 Appointed Executive Officer, Head of Business Development Department, Business Strategy Division Oct 2019 Appointed Vice President and Executive Officer, Head of Business Strategy Division and Head of Business Development Office Dec 2019 Appointed Representative Director, Vice President and Executive Officer, Head of Business Strategy Division and Head of Business Development Office Oct 2020 Appointed Representative Director, Vice President and Executive Officer, Head of Business Strategy Division Oct 2025 Appointed Representative Director, Vice President and Executive Officer (current)
1978-05-17
Takashi IKEDA
Director, Head of Software Solutions Division
Apr 1994 Joined the Company Oct 2013 Appointed General Manager, 1st Department, IT Solutions Development Division Mar 2019 Appointed Executive Officer, Head of Development Solutions Division Oct 2019 Appointed Senior Executive Officer, Head of Software Solutions Division Dec 2019 Appointed Director, Senior Executive Officer, Head of Software Solutions Division (current)
1971-07-16
Naoto SUZUKI
Director, Head of Infrastructure Solutions Division
Apr 1994 Joined the Company Oct 2015 Appointed General Manager, 1st Department, Technical Operations Division, IT Solutions Business Unit Oct 2018 Appointed Executive Officer, General Manager, 3rd Infrastructure Solutions Department Oct 2019 Appointed Executive Officer, Head of Infrastructure Solutions Division Dec 2025 Appointed Director, Executive Officer, Head of Infrastructure Solutions Division (current)
1973-06-30
Minoru TAKASE
Director, Audit and Supervisory Committee Member
Apr 1986 Joined KYB Corporation Aug 1992 Joined Sapporo Breweries Ltd. (currently Sapporo Holdings Limited) Sep 2000 Manager, General Affairs Department, Sapporo Beer Development Co., Ltd. (currently Sapporo Real Estate Development Co., Ltd.) Mar 2001 Director, General Affairs Department, same company Oct 2002 Group Leader, Accounting Department, Sapporo Breweries Ltd. Mar 2008 Group Leader, Group Audit Department, Sapporo Holdings Limited Mar 2015 General Manager, Group Audit Department, same company Mar 2017 Secretary General, Audit & Supervisory Board Office, same company; Audit & Supervisory Board Member, Sapporo International Co., Ltd. Mar 2018 Audit & Supervisory Board Member, Sapporo Lion Co., Ltd. (concurrent) Mar 2020 Full-time Audit & Supervisory Board Member, Kamishuichi Miso Co., Ltd. Oct 2021 Joined the Company, Accounting Department (in charge of subsidiary PMI) Dec 2023 Appointed Director (Audit and Supervisory Committee Member) (current)
1962-09-25
Hiroki NAKATA
Director, Audit and Supervisory Committee Member
Nov 2004 Passed the National Bar Examination Oct 2006 Registered as Attorney-at-Law Sep 2007 Joined Nagatacho Law Office (current) Dec 2019 Appointed Director (Audit and Supervisory Committee Member) of the Company (current) Apr 2025 Audit & Supervisory Board Member, Ling Co., Ltd. (current) Jun 2025 Director, Social Welfare Corporation Kojika Fukushikai (current)
1979-06-13
Yasuhiro KOBAYASHI
Director, Audit and Supervisory Committee Member
Apr 1992 Joined Recruit Co., Ltd. (currently Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd.) Apr 1999 Senior Executive Officer, M.T.I. Co., Ltd. Oct 2002 Representative Director, Accelmark Co., Ltd. Oct 2011 Representative Director, Koba Co., Ltd. (current) May 2017 Representative Director, MMB Co., Ltd. (current) Jan 2018 Outside Director, Idoma Holdings Co., Ltd. (current) May 2019 Outside Director, Viscas Co., Ltd. (current) Dec 2020 Appointed Director (Audit and Supervisory Committee Member) of the Company (current) Aug 2022 Director, Max Support Co., Ltd. (current)
1969-05-28
Large Shareholding Reports
Koutsushin Co., Ltd.
2025-09-26
5.00%→5.43%
Disclosures
Executive Change
2026-11-06
Primary Source Filings
TDnet
2026-11-06
業績予想の修正
FY ending Sep 2026
TDnet
2026-11-06
Full-Year Earnings Flash
FY ending Sep 2026
TDnet
2026-11-06
Executive Change
TDnet
2026-09-07
特別損益
TDnet
2026-08-07
Q3 Earnings Flash
FY ending Sep 2026
TDnet
2026-07-28
特別損益
EDINET
2026-05-14
Semi-Annual Securities Report
Period: Oct 2025 – Sep 2026
TDnet
2026-05-08
業績予想の修正
FY ending Sep 2026
TDnet
2026-02-06
Q1 Earnings Flash
FY ending Sep 2026
EDINET
2025-12-22
Annual Securities Report
Period: Oct 2024 – Sep 2025
TDnet
2025-11-27
株主総会招集通知
TDnet
2025-11-07
Full-Year Earnings Flash
FY ending Sep 2025
EDINET
2025-09-26
Large Shareholding Report
TDnet
2025-08-08
Q3 Earnings Flash
FY ending Sep 2025
EDINET
2025-05-14
Semi-Annual Securities Report
Period: Oct 2024 – Sep 2025
TDnet
2025-02-07
Q1 Earnings Flash
FY ending Sep 2025
EDINET
2024-12-23
Annual Securities Report
Period: Oct 2023 – Sep 2024
EDINET
2024-05-14
Quarterly Securities Report
Period: Jan 2024 – Mar 2024
EDINET
2024-02-14
Quarterly Securities Report
Period: Oct 2023 – Dec 2023
EDINET
2023-12-18
Annual Securities Report
Period: Oct 2022 – Sep 2023
EDINET
2023-08-14
Quarterly Securities Report
Period: Apr 2023 – Jun 2023
EDINET
2023-05-15
Quarterly Securities Report
Period: Jan 2023 – Mar 2023
EDINET
2023-02-14
Quarterly Securities Report
Period: Oct 2022 – Dec 2022
EDINET
2022-12-19
Annual Securities Report
EDINET
2022-08-15
Quarterly Securities Report
EDINET
2022-05-13
Quarterly Securities Report
EDINET
2022-02-14
Quarterly Securities Report
EDINET
2021-12-20
Annual Securities Report
EDINET
2021-08-13
Quarterly Securities Report
EDINET
2021-05-14
Quarterly Securities Report
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