FANUC posts record ¥857.8 billion sales as robot revenue rises 15% and China orders jump 55% in the final quarter
FANUC said on April 24 that sales for the year to March 2026 rose 7.6% to a record ¥857.8 billion and operating profit rose 15.7% to ¥183.8 billion, with robots now 44.1% of revenue. Fourth-quarter orders climbed 19.2% to ¥252.0 billion, led by a 55.2% jump in China, and the company guided for another record year while authorising a buyback of up to ¥50 billion.
FANUC Corp., the Yamanashi-based maker of CNC controls and industrial robots, reported record annual sales on April 24 and guided for higher profit again this year, as robot demand in the Americas, Europe and China outweighed a soft market for its machine tools. Sales for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 rose 7.6% to ¥857.8 billion, beating the previous peak of ¥852.0 billion set in fiscal 2022, according to the company's earnings presentation.
Operating profit rose 15.7% to ¥183.8 billion, lifting the operating margin by 1.5 percentage points to 21.4%, the company said. Ordinary profit increased 15.6% to ¥227.5 billion and net profit attributable to owners of the parent grew 12.9% to ¥166.5 billion, or ¥178.47 per share against ¥157.31 a year earlier. The results assumed average exchange rates of ¥150.77 to the dollar and ¥174.79 to the euro. FANUC kept its 60% payout ratio, which gives an annual dividend of ¥107.09 per share.
Robots did most of the work. Sales in the robot segment rose 14.9% to ¥378.6 billion and accounted for 44.1% of group revenue, up from 41.3% a year earlier, according to the filing. Factory automation, which covers CNC systems and servo motors, grew 7.0% to ¥208.5 billion. The Robomachine segment, which includes the ROBODRILL machining centre, ROBOSHOT injection moulding machine and ROBOCUT wire EDM, fell 5.8% to ¥129.6 billion, while service revenue rose 4.4% to ¥141.1 billion.
The fourth quarter, January to March, was the strongest of the year. Quarterly sales rose 10.6% from a year earlier to ¥234.5 billion and operating profit reached ¥56.1 billion, a margin of 23.9%. Robot sales in the quarter jumped 25.5% to ¥109.4 billion. By region, robot sales rose 34.8% in the Americas to ¥48.0 billion, 34.6% in China to ¥26.8 billion and 45.1% in Europe to ¥22.8 billion, while robot sales in Asia outside China fell 49.3%, the presentation showed.
Orders point to momentum carrying into the new year. FANUC booked ¥252.0 billion of orders in the fourth quarter, up 19.2% from a year earlier and 14.5% from the previous quarter. Orders from China rose 55.2% to ¥79.0 billion, lifting the country's share of the order book to 31.3%. Japan rose 29.6% to ¥34.3 billion and Europe 19.4% to ¥37.5 billion, while the Americas were flat at ¥61.2 billion, up 0.9%, and Asia outside China fell 8.8% to ¥36.8 billion. By segment, factory automation orders surged 40.2% to ¥71.1 billion and robot orders rose 10.6% to ¥100.6 billion.
In a summary of the April 24 analyst call, FANUC said Chinese demand was being driven by AI semiconductors, data centres, components for humanoid robots, medical devices and new energy vehicles, and that some customers had pulled CNC purchases forward to secure earlier delivery. In the United States, the company said robot demand was widening from electric vehicles to hybrid and combustion-engine programmes, with general industry steady and some inquiries from data centre projects.
For the year to March 2027, FANUC forecast sales of ¥909.6 billion, up 6.0% and another record, with operating profit up 15.5% to ¥212.2 billion and an operating margin of 23.3%. Net profit is forecast to rise 11.0% to ¥184.9 billion. The plan assumes ¥150 to the dollar and ¥170 to the euro. The company told analysts that it had built current US tariff rates into the forecast and that the impact of the conflict in the Middle East was limited so far.
The board also approved a buyback of up to 10 million shares, about 1.07% of its issued shares, or ¥50 billion, between May 1, 2026 and April 30, 2027. FANUC acquired only ¥553 million of its own shares in the year just ended, and told analysts that the previous ¥50 billion authorisation had gone largely unused because its share price had risen.
The company is also adding capacity close to its largest robot market. FANUC America will spend $90 million, about ¥14.3 billion, on land in Michigan and an 840,000 square foot facility due for completion at the end of 2027, aimed at demand for physical AI, virtual commissioning and digital twin systems, according to the presentation. FANUC said this brings its US investment since 2019 to about $300 million and more than 700 jobs.
FANUC's rivals at home grew more slowly. Yaskawa Electric, which closed its year in February, reported on April 10 that robotics sales rose 4.0% to ¥247.0 billion while segment operating profit fell 14.0% to ¥20.4 billion. Kawasaki Heavy Industries reported on May 12 that robot sales in its precision machinery and robot segment fell to ¥92.9 billion. The comparison below uses each company's own filings.
- FANUC
- Mar 2026
- 857.8
- 378.6
- 14.9
- 21.4
- 909.6
- Yaskawa Electric
- Feb 2026
- 542.1
- 247
- 4
- 8.7
- 580
- Kawasaki Heavy Industries
- Mar 2026
- 2311.2
- 92.9
- -1.8
- 6.3
- 2560
Figures as disclosed by each company. FANUC robot = robot segment; Yaskawa robot = Robotics segment; Kawasaki robot = robot line of the Precision Machinery & Robot segment. Kawasaki margin uses business profit (事業利益) / revenue. Change = current / prior year minus 1.
As of Oct 1, 2026
There are clear risks in the numbers. China supplied 26.6% of full-year sales and almost a third of fourth-quarter orders, and FANUC itself described part of that demand as pull-forward. Robot sales in Asia outside China halved in the fourth quarter, and the Robomachine business remains below its prior-year level. FANUC also told analysts it does not count physical AI robots separately, so investors cannot yet measure how much of the growth comes from the AI-enabled products it is promoting.
ROBOTNESS analysis
FANUC's record year confirms a robot upcycle in the Americas, Europe and China, but its fiscal 2027 plan relies on margin gains more than volume, which leaves it exposed if China's pull-forward fades.
The evidence sits in the guidance. FANUC expects sales to grow 6.0% but operating profit to grow 15.5%, implying a further 1.9 point margin gain to 23.3% after a fourth quarter that already reached 23.9%. Much of the recent order lift came from China, where orders rose 55.2% and the company itself flagged early purchasing.
The strongest counter-argument is breadth. Japanese orders rose 29.6% and European orders 19.4% in the fourth quarter, robot orders grew 10.6% across the group, and FANUC is investing $90 million in new US capacity, which a company expecting a short spike would be unlikely to do.
Bull case: Robot orders above ¥100 billion a quarter become the base, US and European automotive programmes widen beyond EVs, and the open physical AI platform lifts pricing. Operating margin moves toward 24% and the buyback is used in full.
Bear case: China orders normalise after the pull-forward, Asia outside China stays weak and tariffs squeeze US margins. Sales growth falls short of 6% and the margin target slips.
- July 31, 2026: first-quarter results, the first test of whether China orders hold above ¥70 billion.
- Monthly buyback status notices from June 2026: pace of use of the ¥50 billion authorisation.
- End of 2027: completion of the Michigan facility, a marker for local robot production in the United States.
- ¥857.8 billion (+7.6%), a record
- Up to 10 million shares or ¥50 billion, May 2026 to April 2027
- ¥252.0 billion (+19.2% year on year)
- ¥166.5 billion (+12.9%)
- April 2025 to March 2026
- $90 million Michigan facility, completion end of 2027
- Sales ¥909.6 billion, operating profit ¥212.2 billion
- ¥79.0 billion (+55.2%)
- ¥183.8 billion (+15.7%), margin 21.4%
- ¥378.6 billion (+14.9%), 44.1% of total
Why it matters
FANUC is the bellwether for factory automation capex because it sells both the controllers inside machine tools and the robots that tend them. A record year with robot sales up 14.9% and fourth-quarter orders up 19.2% is the clearest signal so far that the post-2023 inventory correction in industrial robots has ended in the Americas, Europe and China.
The mix shift matters as much as the growth. Robots now provide 44.1% of revenue, up from 41.3%, and carry FANUC's push into AI-enabled, open-platform systems. That makes the robot order line, not the CNC line, the variable investors will track through 2026.
Rival analysis
Yaskawa grew robotics sales 4.0% but saw segment profit fall 14.0% to ¥20.4 billion, which suggests FANUC is gaining both volume and pricing power in the same markets. Kawasaki's robot line, at ¥92.9 billion, is less than a quarter of FANUC's robot segment and relies more on semiconductor wafer handling.
Outside Japan, ABB Robotics and KUKA remain FANUC's main global rivals in automotive and general industry, and Chinese makers compete on price in the domestic market. FANUC's fourth-quarter China robot sales still rose 34.6%, which indicates it is holding share in the segments it targets, as it told analysts for CNC.
Valuation context
At the guidance level, FANUC expects a 23.3% operating margin on ¥909.6 billion of sales, well above Yaskawa's 8.7% group margin last year and Kawasaki's 6.3% business-profit margin. The 60% payout policy plus a ¥50 billion buyback signal that management sees cash generation as durable.
The company noted the earlier buyback went largely unused because the share price rose, which implies the market had already priced in part of the recovery. Any slowdown in China orders would therefore hit a valuation that assumes margin expansion continues.
Supply-chain implications
FANUC makes its own servo motors, controllers and most core components, which insulates it from reducer and motor shortages that affect smaller robot makers. The Michigan investment adds local capacity for robot production in the United States as tariffs persist.
The Chinese demand drivers FANUC named, AI semiconductors, data centres, humanoid robot components and NEVs, overlap with the supply chains of Chinese robot and humanoid makers. FANUC machines are therefore being used to build parts for its own future competitors.
Signals to watch
The July 31 first-quarter results will show whether China orders, at ¥79.0 billion in the March quarter, were a one-off. Watch also robot sales in Asia outside China, which fell 49.3% in the fourth quarter.
On capital, the monthly buyback reports will show whether the ¥50 billion is used. On strategy, FANUC's May new product show will indicate how far its open physical AI platform has moved from demonstration to orders.
Analyst view
Thesis: FANUC enters fiscal 2026 with the strongest order momentum among Japanese robot makers, but its guidance is front-loaded on margin. Confidence: medium. The order data are broad across regions, which supports the call, yet the China share and the company's own reference to pull-forward limit conviction.
We would upgrade confidence to high if first-quarter robot orders stay above ¥100 billion with China above ¥70 billion. We would lower it if Robomachine and Asia outside China keep shrinking while China normalises.
Questions you should be asking
How much of the fourth-quarter China surge was pull-forward, and how much is new structural demand from humanoid and data centre supply chains? FANUC did not quantify it.
When will FANUC begin disclosing physical AI shipments or revenue separately, given that it told analysts it does not count them today? And will the Michigan facility build full robots or only finish and configure them?