Uniqlo Owner Raises Earnings Outlook After Strong Quarter — Update

By Kosaku Narioka

Fast Retailing raised its annual earnings forecasts after quarterly profit rose sharply on stronger sales across various regions, driven in part by store openings in the U.S. and Europe.

The U.S. and Europe have become increasingly important regions for the Japanese owner of Uniqlo as it pursues growth beyond its largest markets, Japan and China, amid a diversification push.

The company said Thursday that new locations in New York, Chicago and Boston helped boost U.S. sales. It also opened stores in France, the U.K. and the Netherlands in recent months.

"Growth momentum is continuing globally," Chief Financial Officer Takeshi Okazaki said. Noting the underlying demand, he said the company will continue to open stores proactively.

Fast Retailing has set a Uniqlo revenue target of 1 trillion yen, equivalent to $6.15 billion, for each of its North American and European operations in about five years.

The Japanese owner of Uniqlo has been adding stores in the U.S., Europe and Southeast Asia in recent quarters while reducing the number of locations in China.

The company on Thursday raised revenue and profit projections for the year ending August, citing better-than-expected quarterly results in North America, Europe and other regions.

Third-quarter earnings also grew in China as profit margins improved, supported by the closures of unprofitable stores.

Okazaki said recent heat waves in Europe forced some stores to suspend operations and hurt consumer sentiment, which weighed on the region's sales.

One challenge going forward is the yen's depreciation, Okazaki said. The company will have to raise the prices of some products in Japan, he said, as a weaker yen increases the costs of goods imported.

The Uniqlo owner's net profit jumped 39% from a year earlier to Y146.7 billion for the three months ended May, surpassing analysts' estimate of Y118.9 billion in a poll by data provider Visible Alpha. Revenue grew 22% to Y1.01 trillion.

For the fiscal year ending August, the company now expects revenue to increase 17% to Y3.970 trillion and net profit to climb 15% to Y500.00 billion. It previously projected revenue of Y3.900 trillion and net profit of Y480.00 billion.

Write to Kosaku Narioka at kosaku.narioka@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 09, 2026 07:14 ET (11:14 GMT)