Megmilk Snow Brand Co., Ltd.
2270・Prime Market・Foods
Business
Megmilk Snow Brand Co., Ltd. is one of Japan's largest dairy groups, founded in 1925. The company operates four segments: dairy products (cheese, butter, powdered milk, etc.), beverages and desserts (milk, yogurt, desserts, etc.), cattle feed and seeds, and joint distribution centers/real estate leasing. It boasts consolidated net sales of ¥615,761 million (FY2026, ending March 2026) and comprises 31 subsidiaries and 15 affiliated companies. Its major customers are Seven-Eleven Japan (24.7% of sales) and Nippon Access (20.3% of sales), and it maintains a vertical value chain spanning from the maintenance of domestic dairy farming infrastructure to final consumer products. The company marked its 100th anniversary in 2025 and upholds
Business Model
The basic model is a manufacturing-and-sales operation that procures raw milk from dairy farmers, manufactures dairy products, beverages, and desserts at its own plants, and sells them through mass retailers, convenience stores, and food-service channels. The company secures profit margins through high-value-added brands such as Foods with Function Claims (MBP Drink, Megumi Gasseri SP Strain Yogurt, etc.) and "Sakeru Cheese," while implementing price revisions to defend earnings when costs rise. The feed and seedling segment supports the domestic dairy farming base, and the joint distribution center business provides a complementary structure that improves group logistics efficiency.
Company Strengths
"Sakeru Cheese" recorded its highest-ever sales in FY2026 (ending March 2026). "Megumi Gasseri-kin SP-kabu Yogurt" (a probiotic strain yogurt) has continued to expand demand as a food with function claims. Long-standing brands such as "6P Cheese" and "Hokkaido Butter" maintain high shelf share at both mass retailers and convenience stores, forming brand assets that competitors cannot easily replicate in the short term.
R&D expenses for FY2026 (ending March 2026) totaled ¥5,334 million. The company continues functional research on lactic acid bacteria (such as Lactobacillus paragasseri SBT2055) centered at the Milk Science Institute, with a track record of publications in international academic journals. The company has built a system that directly translates research outcomes into product competitiveness, including commercialization of foods with function claims and extension of shelf life (from 15 days to 18 days).
Sales to the major customer Seven-Eleven Japan Co., Ltd. totaled ¥152,386 million (24.7% of net sales), and sales to Nippon Access, Inc. totaled ¥125,294 million (20.3% of net sales), with the top two accounting for approximately 45% of net sales combined. Long-term relationships with major distributors and wholesalers secure stable sales volumes and provide an advantage in securing shelf space for new products.
ENVALITH's Perspective
Performance Trend
Revenue continued an expansionary trend from ¥558,403 million in FY2022 to ¥615,761 million in FY2026, but growth paused in FY2026 with a roughly flat 0.0% decline versus the prior period. While the Dairy Products segment posted a 1.9% increase in sales, Beverages & Desserts saw a 1.5% decline in sales, marking a shift in the growth driver. Operating profit came to ¥18,266 million (down 4.5% year on year), the first decline in two periods. Amid continued increases in raw material and transportation costs as an external factor, volume declines in categories where price revisions had already been implemented exceeded expectations. On the other hand, net income surged to ¥32,897 million due to gains from the sale of cross-shareholdings (gain on sale of ¥29,992 million). For FY2027, the company forecasts revenue of ¥645,000 million (up 4.7%) and operating profit of ¥21,000 million (up 15.0%), but expects net income of ¥24,500 million (down 25.5%) as the one-time gain drops off.
Growth Strategy
Under Next Design 2030, the company is advancing a "major transformation of assets," implementing production system consolidation, brand strengthening, and improved capital efficiency in an integrated manner.
Fermented milk and chilled dessert production functions at the Kawagoe Plant will be consolidated into the Ebina Plant, Noda Plant, and Luna Bussan Co., Ltd. Investment amount approximately ¥10.9 billion. Aims to improve the earnings structure of the Beverages and Desserts segment through labor savings and productivity gains. The company states the impact on FY2027 (ending March 2027) results will be minor.
Policy-holding shares are being sold in a planned manner, reducing the balance of investment securities from ¥56,370 million (end of FY2025, ended March 2025) to ¥35,297 million (end of FY2026, ended March 2026). Recorded a gain on sale of ¥29,992 million, substantially improving ROE from 5.8% to 13.6%. Also carried out treasury share buybacks and cancellations (¥20 billion this fiscal year) utilizing capital surplus.
At the Board of Directors meeting in May 2026, a treasury share buyback framework of up to 4,000,000 shares / ¥10 billion was resolved (acquisition period: May 15, 2026 to March 12, 2027). Combined with a minimum dividend floor of ¥100, the company maintains its policy of a consolidated dividend payout ratio of 40% or more, excluding gains from asset sales. The projected dividend payout ratio for FY2027 (ending March 2027) is 24.1%.
Strengthening brand power through activities to instill the new CI (Brand-NEW "BRAND"), together with enhanced promotion of foods with function claims (MBP drink, Megumi Gasseri SP Strain Yogurt, etc.) and mainstay products such as "Sakeru Cheese." In FY2027 (ending March 2027), the company aims to expand sales of higher-profitability products through the full effect of price revisions and enhanced marketing.
In November 2025, the company decided to cease production at the Okoppe Plant in Monbetsu District, Hokkaido. An impairment loss of ¥2,154 million was already recorded in FY2026 (ended March 2026). The consolidation of production sites in the Dairy Products segment aims to reduce fixed costs and improve asset efficiency, forming part of the "transformation of the structure to enhance the industrial value of milk" under Next Design 2030.
Last updated: July 19, 2026