GREE Holdings FY2024 Q4 Financial Results Briefing (Transcript)

GREE, Inc. reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full fiscal year ending June 2024, detailing a period of strategic transition and investment. For FY2024, the company achieved net sales of ¥61.3 billion and an operating profit of ¥6.0 billion. While quarterly results met internal expectations, both sales and profit saw year-over-year declines, primarily due to a reactive drop following major anniversary events for the flagship title Heaven Burns Red and increased development costs for upcoming projects.

The company’s strategy centers on bifurcating its portfolio into continuous growth businesses and long-term investment businesses. The Metaverse segment emerged as a highlight, with the platform business reaching full-year profitability and gifting sales driving a 25% operating margin. This profit is being reinvested into the VTuber business, which saw a 190% year-over-year increase in sales. Conversely, the Game and Anime Business is undergoing a structural transformation; GREE has adjusted its medium-term targets for FY2026 downward as it pushes back release schedules to focus on high-quality multiplatform development and a full-scale entry into the console market.

Looking ahead to FY2025, GREE forecasts sales of ¥60.2 billion and an operating profit of ¥3.8 billion. This outlook reflects aggressive spending on new game titles and SaaS product development within the newly restructured DX Business, which now integrates the former Commerce segment. The company also significantly increased its shareholder returns, raising its dividend to ¥16.5 per share in line with a revised policy targeting a 30% payout ratio. Management expects these investments to yield substantial growth by FY2027 as the new product pipeline matures.