Food & Life Companies (3563 JP): Analyst Briefing

Nomura maintains a Buy rating on Food & Life Companies (3563 JP) following the company's analyst briefing, with the shares at JPY 4,938 as of 18 September 2026 and a target price of JPY 6,600. The target price is derived by applying a fair-value P/E of 36.4x to the FY27/9 EPS forecast of JPY 180.9, representing a 20% premium to the Russell/Nomura Large Cap retail trade sector average P/E of 30.3x on FY27 forecasts, justified by Nomura's forecast operating profit CAGR of 13% for FY28/9-30/9 versus the sector average of 7% over the medium term. Key risks include a slowdown in new store openings; declining competitiveness of existing stores due to labor shortages and inadequate training; public concerns about food including seafood; weaker economic sentiment hurting customer footfall and average spend; a sharp rise in food prices (particularly rice and fish); yen strengthening reducing yen-denominated profits; epidemics in the company's operating regions;