Nomura Hints at Scaling Back Hiring If Returns Are Lackluster

Japan’s largest brokerage may scale back hiring plans if investments fail to deliver adequate returns.

That’s the message from Nomura Holdings Inc. Chief Financial Officer Takumi Kitamura, who cautioned investors following disappointing earnings last month.

“Our plan to expand revenues also includes investments such as new hires, but if we are unable to generate adequate returns for our investment, we will make timely adjustments to our headcount,” he said in the firm’s annual report Thursday. His company will “cut back as much as possible on investing new resources” to address its elevated expenses, he said.

His comments are part of his longest ever “CFO Message” within the report since he got the job in 2016. While Nomura has recruited dozens this year for its market business, it’s also lowered profit targets and begun a structural review to contain costs and lift revenue.

Nomura hired 3,418 people in the financial year through March, bringing its total headcount just above the previous year to 26,775, the report showed.

It’s a notable change to Kitamura’s tone last year, when he said in the report that “we must increase headcount in growth areas” and “intend to actively invest for growth,” while strictly controlling expenses.

The brokerage’s return on equity, a key profit measure, fell two percentage points in the year ended March to 3.1% compared with Chief Executive Officer Kentaro Okuda’s target of 8% to 10%.