Energy & ChemicalsThin moat

Marubeni (8002) — moat facet

Energy & Chemicals earns about 2% on its assets and swings with trading margins and one-off gains.

Energy & Chemicals had revenue of ¥1,365,839 million and net profit of ¥23,153 million in the year to March 2026, against ¥86,189 million the year before1. Its segment assets were ¥1,147,594 million2, and it earned about 2.0% on them3, the lowest in the company.

Energy & Chemicals net profit (¥ bn)86.2Yr to Mar 202523.2Yr to Mar 202625.8Apr-Jun 2026 alonePrior year included a ¥45.7bn Qatar LNG currency gain; Marubeni results
One quarter of 2026 earned more than the whole of the year before it.

The fall was mostly the absence of a one-off: the prior year included a realised foreign exchange gain of ¥45.7 billion on the end of a Qatar LNG project4. Adjusted profit fell from ¥42 billion to ¥34 billion5. Chemical trading earned ¥1.7 billion against ¥12.8 billion, oil and gas exploration and production turned to a loss of ¥3.5 billion, and MIECO, the petroleum and gas trader, doubled to ¥8.1 billion6.

Marubeni's LNG stakes are small: 6.1% of Equatorial Guinea LNG, 10.0% of Peru LNG and 1.0% of PNG LNG7, together earning ¥5.8 billion8.

The April-June 2026 quarter's profit was ¥25.8 billion against ¥8.9 billion, on petrochemical trading and North American gas trading9 — a quarter that exceeded the whole previous year.

The measure is whether the trading gains last. A trading business that earns more in a quarter than in a year is a business with volatile margins, not a new level.

Moat trajectory: Holding steady

The annual fall was the absence of a one-off gain; the latest quarter exceeded the whole prior year on trading.

The number that tests this moat
Moat Explorer calc
Energy & Chemicals return on segment assets
about 2.0% (¥23.2bn on ¥1,147.6bn)

The lowest in the company; the latest quarter's trading profit would, if sustained, lift it substantially.

How it's calculated: Arithmetic on figures reported in Marubeni's financial results, integrated report and IR presentations; operands shown in the source line.
Source: Moat Explorer calculation from Marubeni's filings ↗
References
  1. ReportedEnergy & Chemicals had revenue of ¥1,365,839 million and net profit of ¥23,153 million in the year to March 2026, against ¥86,189 million the year before.
    Marubeni Corporation, Summary of Consolidated Financial Results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 (IFRS) - consolidated statements of profit or loss, financial position and cash flows, the segment note on the ten operating segments with revenue, gross trading profit, operating profit, share of profit of associates, net profit and segment assets, the investments in associates by segment, the one-time items including the Daiichi Life real-estate valuation gain, the dividend and buyback record, and the forecast for the year to March 2027 with its assumptions. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 1 May 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedIts segment assets were ¥1,147,594 million, and it earned about 2.0% on them, the lowest in the company.
    Marubeni Corporation, Summary of Consolidated Financial Results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 (IFRS) - consolidated statements of profit or loss, financial position and cash flows, the segment note on the ten operating segments with revenue, gross trading profit, operating profit, share of profit of associates, net profit and segment assets, the investments in associates by segment, the one-time items including the Daiichi Life real-estate valuation gain, the dividend and buyback record, and the forecast for the year to March 2027 with its assumptions. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 1 May 2026 · source ↗
  3. Moat Explorer calcIts segment assets were ¥1,147,594 million, and it earned about 2.0% on them, the lowest in the company.
    Moat Explorer calculation from Marubeni's reported figures. Equity-method share of profit before tax: 338.3 / 664.5 = 50.9%. Resources share of adjusted net profit: 147.0 / 480.0 = 30.6%. Investments in associates as a share of total assets: 3,504.2 / 10,531.8 = 33.3%. Segment net profit over segment assets, year to March 2026: Food & Agri 81.5 / 2,700.6 = 3.0%; Metals & Mineral Resources 134.3 / 1,647.6 = 8.2%; Finance, Leasing & Real Estate 162.0 / 1,021.0 = 15.9%; Power & Infrastructure 53.6 / 1,776.1 = 3.0%; Aerospace & Mobility 47.8 / 838.6 = 5.7%; Energy & Chemicals 23.2 / 1,147.6 = 2.0%; Lifestyle 25.9 / 667.6 = 3.9%. Food & Agri net margin on revenue: 81.5 / 3,720.5 = 2.2%. Total payout: (176.5 + 55.0) / 543.9 = 42.6%. Trailing twelve months to June 2026: net profit 543.9 + 186.4 - 154.4 = 575.9; revenue 8,265.8 + 2,609.2 - 2,163.7 = 8,711.3. Net profit growth from the year to March 2016: 543.9 / 62.3 = 8.7 times. Share of the Food & Agri segment's profit from Helena: 37.3 / 81.5 = 45.8%. Dividends received against equity-method income: 220.9 / 338.3 = 65.3%. Berkshire's gain on cost: 4,468 / 1,572 = 2.84 times. Equity growth from currency translation: 345.8 of 734.5 = 47.1%. Market value against the ¥26 trillion that ranked 100th in the world at March 2026: 8.09 / 26 = 31%. Other segments, year to March 2026: IT Solutions 5.4 + Next Generation Business Development 19.6 - Next Generation Corporate Development 1.7 - Other 7.7 = 15.6; with Lifestyle 25.9 the chart's last band is 41.5, and for the year to March 2025 29.5 + 3.5 + 4.7 - 2.2 + 17.3 = 52.8. Trailing P/E: 8.09 / 0.5759 = 14.0. — FY to March 2026 · publ. September 2026 · source ↗
    Method: Arithmetic on figures reported in Marubeni's financial results, integrated report and IR presentations; operands shown in the source line.
  4. ReportedThe fall was mostly the absence of a one-off: the prior year included a realised foreign exchange gain of ¥45.7 billion on the end of a Qatar LNG project.
    Marubeni Corporation, Summary of Consolidated Financial Results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 (IFRS) - consolidated statements of profit or loss, financial position and cash flows, the segment note on the ten operating segments with revenue, gross trading profit, operating profit, share of profit of associates, net profit and segment assets, the investments in associates by segment, the one-time items including the Daiichi Life real-estate valuation gain, the dividend and buyback record, and the forecast for the year to March 2027 with its assumptions. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 1 May 2026 · source ↗
  5. ReportedAdjusted profit fell from ¥42 billion to ¥34 billion.
    Marubeni Corporation, full-year IR presentation for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 - adjusted net profit by segment and by resources and non-resources, and the one-time items. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 1 May 2026 · source ↗
  6. ReportedChemical trading earned ¥1.7 billion against ¥12.8 billion, oil and gas exploration and production turned to a loss of ¥3.5 billion, and MIECO, the petroleum and gas trader, doubled to ¥8.1 billion.
    Marubeni Corporation, full-year IR presentation for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 - adjusted net profit by segment and by resources and non-resources, and the one-time items. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 1 May 2026 · source ↗
  7. ReportedMarubeni's LNG stakes are small: 6.1% of Equatorial Guinea LNG, 10.0% of Peru LNG and 1.0% of PNG LNG, together earning ¥5.8 billion.
    Marubeni Corporation, full-year IR presentation for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 - resource asset table (stakes, capacities, partners and exposures), equity volumes, sensitivities to commodity prices and currencies, and the Middle East risk scenarios and risk-management framework. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 1 May 2026 · source ↗
  8. ReportedMarubeni's LNG stakes are small: 6.1% of Equatorial Guinea LNG, 10.0% of Peru LNG and 1.0% of PNG LNG, together earning ¥5.8 billion.
    Marubeni Corporation, full-year IR presentation for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 - resource asset table (stakes, capacities, partners and exposures), equity volumes, sensitivities to commodity prices and currencies, and the Middle East risk scenarios and risk-management framework. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 1 May 2026 · source ↗
  9. ReportedThe April-June 2026 quarter's profit was ¥25.8 billion against ¥8.9 billion, on petrochemical trading and North American gas trading — a quarter that exceeded the whole previous year.
    Marubeni Corporation, Summary of Consolidated Financial Results for the three months ended June 30, 2026 (IFRS) - revenue, operating profit and net profit, segment results, progress against the full-year forecast, the balance sheet at 30 June 2026, and the revised GC2027 capital allocation and new share buyback. — April-June 2026 · publ. 3 August 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 24, 2026