By Kosaku Narioka

Seven & i Holdings raised its annual profit forecast after posting a sharp jump in third-quarter net profit as it gears up for a listing of its North American business.

The Japanese owner of 7-Eleven said Thursday that operating profit for its domestic convenience-store business increased, thanks to higher revenue in the three months ended November. Operating profit at its overseas convenience-store business fell as gas sales at its North American business dropped.

Seven & i announced a series of measures last March to boost its shareholder value as it sought to head off Alimentation Couche-Tard's $47 billion takeover bid, which the Canadian owner of Circle K abandoned in July.

The Japan-based company last year sold a group of superstores and other businesses for $5.4 billion and announced a plan to list its North American convenience-store business by the end of 2026. The company is using proceeds from both to fund a $13 billion share buyback.

Seven & i said in December that Joe DePinto, who had served as chief executive of the North American business for more than 20 years, would step down at the end of 2025 and that the board was conducting a comprehensive process to find a successor.

Chief Financial Officer Yoshimichi Maruyama on Thursday said internal and external candidates are being considered for the job.

The 7-Eleven owner has been taking steps on its own to boost earnings, such as improving its offerings of proprietary and freshly made food items.

Seven & i reported third-quarter net profit of 76.66 billion yen, equivalent to $489 million, a more than sixfold increase from a year earlier, when restructuring-related losses hit the bottom line. Analysts polled by data provider Visible Alpha had expected net profit of Y71.7 billion for the latest quarter.

Revenue, however, fell 20% to Y2.434 trillion, partly due to the recent sale of superstores and other businesses.

For the fiscal year ending February, the 7-Eleven owner projected net profit to climb 56% to Y270.00 billion, up from its previous forecast of Y265.00 billion. It reiterated expectations for revenue to decline 12% to Y10.560 trillion.

Write to Kosaku Narioka at kosaku.narioka@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 08, 2026 06:59 ET (11:59 GMT)

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