DIC (4631) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: ¥437.69B
• Dividend Yield: 2.61%
• Average Volume (3M): 296.89K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 13.0
• Beta (1Y): 0.71
• Revenue Growth: -1.45%
• EPS Growth: N/A
• Country: JP
• Employees: 21,184
• Sector: Basic Materials
• Sector Strength: 58
• Industry: Chemicals - Specialty
• EPS (TTM): 112.19
• Shares Outstanding: 95,156,906
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 328,600
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 296,893
• PEG Ratio: 0.21
• Price to Book (P/B): 0.73
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.33
• P/FCF Ratio: 11.04
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: N/A
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: N/A
• 1Y Price Target: N/A
• Price Target Upside: N/A
• Rating Consensus: N/A
• Number of Analyst Covering: 0
• EPS Forecast (FY): 342.18
• Revenue Forecast (FY): ¥1.06T

• Rating: 65 Neutral
• Price Target: ¥4,563.00 ▲(25.74% Upside)
• Action: Downgraded Date: 02/18/26
• Date: Action: Downgraded 02/18/26

The score is driven primarily by improving profitability and cash flow, offset by the steep 2025 revenue decline and still-elevated leverage. Technicals are supportive with a strong uptrend, but overbought signals temper the near-term outlook; valuation is reasonable with a moderate P/E and ~2.26% yield.

Positive Factors

Diversified specialty-chemicals portfolio

DIC’s business spans printing inks, resins and functional specialty materials sold to industrial and packaging customers. That diversified B2B product mix and ongoing supply relationships reduce single-market dependence, supporting steadier revenues and durable demand over months.

Improving cash generation

A meaningful rebound in operating cash flow and FCF provides financial flexibility to fund operations, invest in product lines, and reduce leverage. Consistent cash generation over several quarters would underpin reinvestment, debt repayment and operational stability.

Margins showing operational improvement

Improved EBITDA and a return to positive net margin reflect better cost control and pricing power in specialty segments. While not high, these margins indicate the core business can generate operating profits, which supports durability as volumes recover.

Negative Factors

Steep revenue decline in 2025

A large top-line contraction materially reduces margin buffers and cash predictability; recovery depends on end-market demand for packaging, printing and industrial applications. Such volatility raises execution risk and lengthens the timeline to re-lever growth sustainably.

Elevated leverage

Debt-to-equity near 1.0, though improved, leaves the company relatively debt-heavy for its profile. Elevated leverage limits strategic flexibility, increases interest and refinancing risk in a downturn, and constrains capacity for opportunistic investment or M&A.

Inconsistent cash conversion

Material swings in FCF relative to earnings point to working-capital variability and uneven conversion. Unreliable cash conversion complicates dividend, capex and debt-paydown planning, increasing vulnerability to industry cycles and short-term liquidity stress.

DIC Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

DIC Corporation manufactures and sells printing inks, organic pigments, and polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) compounds worldwide. It operates through three segments: Packaging & Graphic, Color & Display, and Functional Products. The Packaging & Graphic segment offers printing materials, including gravure, flexo, metal decoration, security, jet, offset, and news inks; packaging adhesives; coextruded multilayer films; and polystyrene, as well as other products and solutions for packaging applications. The Color & Display segment provides color material products, such as organic pigments, pigments for color filters, effect pigments, pigments for cosmetics, health foods, and natural colorants; and display materials comprising liquid crystal materials. The Functional Products segment offers performance materials that include coating, UV-curable, waterborne, acrylic, polyurethane, epoxy, phenolic, polyester/alkyd, unsaturated polyester, and other resins, as well as fluorochemicals, modifiers, alkylphenols, metal carboxylates, sulphur chemicals, and textile printing agents/leather colorants. It also provides composite materials, which comprise PPS and functional compounds, masterbatch for fibers/films, industrial adhesive and magnetic tapes, hollow fiber membrane modules, building material, decorative papers and sheets, decorative films, and plastic pallets; and DLP 3D printing materials and blue green Algal Polysaccharide. DIC Corporation offers its products to electronics, automotive, packaging, healthcare, color, display, house equipment/infrastructure, and functional material industries. The company was formerly known as Dainippon Ink and Chemicals, Incorporated and changed its name to DIC Corporation in April 2008. DIC Corporation was founded in 1908 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

How the Company Makes Money

DIC generates revenue primarily through the sale of printing inks, which serve a wide range of industries, including publishing and packaging. The company also earns income from its organic pigments used in plastics, coatings, and cosmetics, which are essential for various consumer products. Additionally, DIC's revenue model includes providing customized solutions and value-added services to its clients, enhancing customer loyalty and driving repeat business. Significant partnerships with major brands and manufacturers in the packaging and printing sectors further bolster DIC's earnings, as they rely on the company's innovative products to enhance their own offerings. Moreover, DIC's strategic investments in research and development ensure a steady pipeline of new products, allowing the company to maintain a competitive edge in the market and attract new customers.

DIC Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Financials are improving but not yet stable: profitability recovered versus 2023’s loss and free cash flow rebounded strongly in 2025, but revenue fell sharply in 2025 (-31.6%) and leverage remains elevated (debt-to-equity ~1.00), keeping risk higher in a downturn.

Income Statement

Revenue has been volatile, with a sharp decline in 2025 (-31.6%) after modest growth in 2024 (+3.1%). Profitability improved meaningfully versus 2023’s loss, with 2025 net margin at ~3.1% and EBITDA margin at ~10.2%, indicating better cost/price mix and operating leverage. However, margins remain mid-single-digit at the bottom line and the recent top-line contraction is a clear near-term concern.

Balance Sheet

Leverage is elevated for the profile: debt-to-equity sits around ~1.00 in 2025 (improved from ~1.21 in 2024 and ~1.45 in 2023), showing progress but still meaningful balance-sheet risk. Equity has strengthened (up notably from 2024 to 2025), supporting the capital base, yet the company remains relatively debt-heavy, which can constrain flexibility in a downcycle.

Cash Flow

Cash generation is mixed. Operating cash flow improved in 2025 (¥73.0B) versus 2024 (¥46.2B), and free cash flow rebounded strongly to ¥31.3B (from ~¥3.4B in 2024). That said, cash conversion is not consistently strong—free cash flow is ~43% of net income in 2025 and was weak in 2024—suggesting variability in working capital and/or investment needs.

Breakdown	TTM	Dec 2025	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue	1.06T	1.05T	1.07T	1.04T	1.05T	855.38B
Gross Profit	225.87B	227.97B	222.20B	186.38B	199.22B	177.32B
EBITDA	99.81B	107.16B	100.09B	37.90B	88.47B	72.34B
Net Income	27.99B	32.35B	21.31B	-39.86B	17.61B	4.37B
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	1.20T	1.27T	1.23T	1.24T	1.26T	1.07T
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	57.35B	68.91B	61.87B	87.53B	63.38B	38.25B
Total Debt	467.43B	471.28B	484.33B	528.96B	509.33B	384.21B
Total Liabilities	789.67B	783.25B	805.82B	845.62B	840.55B	690.47B
Stockholders Equity	396.13B	470.88B	401.42B	363.94B	387.00B	345.93B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	0.00	31.32B	3.42B	31.02B	-37.46B	6.17B
Operating Cash Flow	0.00	72.97B	46.21B	89.09B	7.93B	44.81B
Investing Cash Flow	0.00	-20.59B	-17.08B	-66.46B	-73.16B	-147.61B
Financing Cash Flow	0.00	-45.39B	-62.59B	-2.92B	83.95B	99.55B

DIC Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 3629.00
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For JP:4631, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 3629 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 4172.85, below the 50-day MA of 3884.71, and above the 200-day MA of 3368.63, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 154.48 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 68.66 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 72.48 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for JP:4631.

DIC Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
4633	77 Outperform	¥135.02B	11.39	―	3.72%	5.40%	14.80%
4626	75 Outperform	¥611.46B	39.14	―	3.26%	11.78%	8.98%
4628	74 Outperform	¥172.01B	14.96	6.87%	1.11%	2.88%	16.60%
4612	69 Neutral	¥2.66T	15.09	10.44%	1.52%	9.81%	32.64%
4613	68 Neutral	¥461.29B	13.77	13.71%	3.38%	0.29%	27.84%
4631	65 Neutral	¥437.69B	12.96	8.14%	2.61%	-1.45%	―
Sector *	61 Neutral	$10.43B	7.12	-0.05%	2.87%	2.86%	-36.73%

DIC Corporate Events

DIC Unveils Phase 2 of Vision 2030 to Drive Growth in AI-Era Materials

DIC Corporation has launched Phase 2 of its long-term management plan, DIC Vision 2030, covering fiscal years 2026 to 2030 as the final stage toward its 2030 goals. The company defines this phase as the period to fully realize its vision, following a foundation-building Phase 1 that ran from 2022 to 2025.

In Phase 2, DIC aims to build a business portfolio that supports sustainable growth and profitability while improving capital efficiency and enhancing shareholder returns. It plans to boost the profitability of core businesses through structural reforms and product portfolio transformation, and to concentrate resources on growth fields such as semiconductor, battery and physical AI materials that enable an AI-integrated society.

The most recent analyst rating on (JP:4631) stock is a Buy with a Yen4499.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on DIC stock, see the JP:4631 Stock Forecast page.

DIC Beats Profit Forecasts for Fiscal 2025 Despite Slight Sales Shortfall

DIC Corporation reported that its fiscal 2025 consolidated net sales fell slightly short of earlier forecasts, reflecting lower-than-expected sales volumes across its businesses. However, profitability improved as operating income, ordinary income, and net income attributable to owners of the parent all exceeded projections, supported by region- and product-specific price adjustments and declining raw material costs.

The company’s ordinary income also benefited from smaller foreign exchange losses than anticipated, while bottom-line earnings were further lifted by an extraordinary gain of ¥6.9 billion from the sale of works of art. As a result, net income rose sharply versus the forecast and the prior fiscal year, indicating stronger earnings quality despite modest top-line weakness and reinforcing DIC’s capacity to manage margins in a challenging demand environment.

The most recent analyst rating on (JP:4631) stock is a Buy with a Yen4499.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on DIC stock, see the JP:4631 Stock Forecast page.

DIC Lifts Profits on High-Value Products and Pledges Higher Dividend for 2026

DIC Corporation reported that net sales for fiscal 2025 fell as shipments of mass-market consumer-adjacent products, such as packaging inks and pigments for coatings and plastics, declined amid higher prices and economic uncertainty. However, operating income improved on strong demand for high-value-added offerings, ongoing price revisions to protect margins, and better profitability in its Color & Display segment.

Net income attributable to owners of the parent rose sharply and exceeded both the prior year and previous forecasts, boosted by a ¥6.9 billion gain from the sale of artworks, while all key profit metrics topped guidance. Looking ahead to fiscal 2026, DIC expects a recovery in overseas demand and expanded sales of high-value-added products, alongside structural reforms in Color & Display, to lift net sales and operating income, and it plans to raise its ordinary dividend to ¥140 per share under a new shareholder return policy targeting a payout ratio of at least 40%.

The most recent analyst rating on (JP:4631) stock is a Buy with a Yen4499.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on DIC stock, see the JP:4631 Stock Forecast page.

DIC lifts profit and dividend despite softer sales in FY2025

DIC Corporation reported consolidated net sales of ¥1,052.2 billion for fiscal 2025, down 1.8% year on year, while operating income rose 17.2% to ¥52.2 billion and net income attributable to owners of the parent jumped 51.8% to ¥32.4 billion, reflecting stronger profitability despite slightly lower revenue. The company improved its shareholders’ equity ratio to 37.0%, lifted cash flow from operations, sharply increased its annual dividend to ¥200 per share for 2025, and projected moderate growth in sales and earnings for 2026, signaling confidence in its financial position and a more shareholder‑friendly capital policy.

On a non‑consolidated basis, DIC posted slightly lower sales and ordinary income but a steep decline in net income, partly reflecting structural changes, including the exclusion of two Qingdao‑based subsidiaries from the consolidation scope. Management also adopted revised accounting standards during the year, while maintaining a policy of providing detailed disclosure and analyst briefings, underscoring its focus on transparency for institutional investors and other stakeholders.

The most recent analyst rating on (JP:4631) stock is a Buy with a Yen4499.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on DIC stock, see the JP:4631 Stock Forecast page.