Step Co (TSE:9795) Beneish M-Score: -2.18 (As of Jun. 27, 2026)


TSE:9795 Step Co Ltd TSE:9795
78 GF Score
Price 円2,237.00
GF Value 円2,357.44
Valuation Fairly Valued
View Full Analysis

What is Step Co Beneish M-Score?

Step Co TSE:9795 +1.91% 78 Beneish M-Score is -2.18 as of Jun. 27, 2026. GuruFocus rates TSE:9795 with a GF Score™ of 78/100 and a GF Value™ of 円2,357.44 (Fairly Valued). Among 243 Education companies, Step Co ranks worse than 77.37% on this metric.

The zones of discrimination for M-Score is as such:

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.
An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Good Sign:

Beneish M-Score -2.18 no higher than -1.78, which implies that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

The historical rank and industry rank for Step Co's Beneish M-Score or its related term are showing as below:

TSE:9795' s Beneish M-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -2.8   Med: -2.43   Max: -1.78
Current: -2.18

During the past 13 years, the highest Beneish M-Score of Step Co was -1.78. The lowest was -2.80. And the median was -2.43.


Step Co Beneish M-Score Historical Data

* Premium members only.

The historical data trend for Step Co's Beneish M-Score can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

Step Co Beneish M-Score Chart

Step Co Annual Data
Trend Sep16 Sep17 Sep18 Sep19 Sep20 Sep21 Sep22 Sep23 Sep24 Sep25
Beneish M-Score
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -2.64 -2.41 -1.78 -2.46 -2.18

Step Co Semi-Annual Data
Sep16 Mar17 Sep17 Mar18 Sep18 Mar19 Sep19 Mar20 Sep20 Mar21 Sep21 Mar22 Sep22 Mar23 Sep23 Mar24 Sep24 Mar25 Sep25 Mar26
Beneish M-Score Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 0.00 -2.46 0.00 -2.18 0.00

TSE:9795 vs EDU, TAL, GHC: Beneish M-Score Comparison

For the Education & Training Services subindustry, Step Co's Beneish M-Score, along with its competitors' market caps and Beneish M-Score data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.


Step Co Beneish M-Score vs Education Industry

For the Education industry and Consumer Defensive sector, Step Co's Beneish M-Score distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where Step Co's Beneish M-Score falls into.


TSE:9795
78GF Score
Step Co Ltd TSE:9795
Beneish M-Score is just one metric. See GF Score™, valuation, warning signs, and more.
View Full Analysis

Step Co Beneish M-Score Calculation

The M-score was created by Professor Messod Beneish. Instead of measuring the bankruptcy risk (Altman Z-Score) or business trend (Piotroski F-Score), M-score can be used to detect the risk of earnings manipulation. This is the original research paper on M-score.

The M-Score Variables:

The M-score of Step Co for today is based on a combination of the following eight different indices:

M=-4.84+0.92 * DSRI+0.528 * GMI+0.404 * AQI+0.892 * SGI+0.115 * DEPI
=-4.84+0.92 * 0.9534+0.528 * 0.9789+0.404 * 1.9274+0.892 * 1.0495+0.115 * 1.0154
-0.172 * SGAI+4.679 * TATA-0.327 * LVGI
-0.172 * 0.9407+4.679 * -0.022678-0.327 * 0.9221
=-2.18

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Sep25) TTM:Last Year (Sep24) TTM:
Total Receivables was 円95 Mil.
Revenue was 円15,847 Mil.
Gross Profit was 円4,701 Mil.
Total Current Assets was 円8,589 Mil.
Total Assets was 円30,571 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was 円15,993 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was 円518 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was 円210 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was 円2,370 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was 円54 Mil.
Net Income was 円2,690 Mil.
Gross Profit was 円0 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was 円3,383 Mil.
Total Receivables was 円95 Mil.
Revenue was 円15,099 Mil.
Gross Profit was 円4,385 Mil.
Total Current Assets was 円10,257 Mil.
Total Assets was 円29,260 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was 円16,029 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was 円528 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was 円213 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was 円2,376 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was 円140 Mil.




1. DSRI = Days Sales in Receivables Index

Measured as the ratio of Revenue in Total Receivables in year t to year t-1.

A large increase in DSR could be indicative of revenue inflation.

DSRI=(Receivables_t / Revenue_t) / (Receivables_t-1 / Revenue_t-1)
=(95.4 / 15846.886) / (95.339 / 15098.935)
=0.00602 / 0.006314
=0.9534

2. GMI = Gross Margin Index

Measured as the ratio of gross margin in year t-1 to gross margin in year t.

Gross margin has deteriorated when this index is above 1. A firm with poorer prospects is more likely to manipulate earnings.

GMI=GrossMargin_t-1 / GrossMargin_t
=(GrossProfit_t-1 / Revenue_t-1) / (GrossProfit_t / Revenue_t)
=(4384.981 / 15098.935) / (4701.458 / 15846.886)
=0.290417 / 0.29668
=0.9789

3. AQI = Asset Quality Index

AQI is the ratio of asset quality in year t to year t-1.

Asset quality is measured as the ratio of non-current assets other than Property, Plant and Equipment to Total Assets.

AQI=(1 - (CurrentAssets_t + PPE_t) / TotalAssets_t) / (1 - (CurrentAssets_t-1 + PPE_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=(1 - (8588.647 + 15992.784) / 30571.07) / (1 - (10256.783 + 16029.117) / 29260.273)
=0.195925 / 0.101652
=1.9274

4. SGI = Sales Growth Index

Ratio of Revenue in year t to sales in year t-1.

Sales growth is not itself a measure of manipulation. However, growth companies are likely to find themselves under pressure to manipulate in order to keep up appearances.

SGI=Sales_t / Sales_t-1
=Revenue_t / Revenue_t-1
=15846.886 / 15098.935
=1.0495

5. DEPI = Depreciation Index

Measured as the ratio of the rate of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization in year t-1 to the corresponding rate in year t.

DEPI greater than 1 indicates that assets are being depreciated at a slower rate. This suggests that the firm might be revising useful asset life assumptions upwards, or adopting a new method that is income friendly.

DEPI=(Depreciation_t-1 / (Depreciaton_t-1 + PPE_t-1)) / (Depreciation_t / (Depreciaton_t + PPE_t))
=(527.79 / (527.79 + 16029.117)) / (518.342 / (518.342 + 15992.784))
=0.031877 / 0.031393
=1.0154

Note: If the Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization data is not available, we assume that the depreciation rate is constant and set the Depreciation Index to 1.

6. SGAI = Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index

The ratio of Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) to Sales in year t relative to year t-1.

SGA expenses index > 1 means that the company is becoming less efficient in generate sales.

SGAI=(SGA_t / Sales_t) / (SGA_t-1 /Sales_t-1)
=(210.006 / 15846.886) / (212.718 / 15098.935)
=0.013252 / 0.014088
=0.9407

7. LVGI = Leverage Index

The ratio of total debt to Total Assets in year t relative to yeat t-1.

An LVGI > 1 indicates an increase in leverage

LVGI=((LTD_t + CurrentLiabilities_t) / TotalAssets_t) / ((LTD_t-1 + CurrentLiabilities_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=((53.949 + 2369.961) / 30571.07) / ((140.191 + 2375.898) / 29260.273)
=0.079288 / 0.08599
=0.9221

8. TATA = Total Accruals to Total Assets

Total accruals calculated as the change in working capital accounts other than cash less depreciation.

TATA=(IncomefromContinuingOperations_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(NetIncome_t - NonOperatingIncome_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(2689.679 - 0 - 3382.978) / 30571.07
=-0.022678

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator. An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Step Co has a M-score of -2.18 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

Frequently Asked Questions Learn more about Beneish M-Score →
What does a Beneish M-Score of -2.18 mean?
Step Co (TSE:9795) has a Beneish M-Score of -2.18 as of Jun. 27, 2026. The Beneish M-score measures the likelihood of earnings manipulation. View historical data on Step Co and its competitors. According to the industry distribution chart, Step Co ranks #188 out of 243 companies in the Education industry, placing it in the top 77.4%.
Is Step Co's Beneish M-Score too high?
Step Co's current Beneish M-Score is -2.18. Based on the distribution chart, Step Co ranks #188 out of 243 companies in the Education industry, which is in the bottom quartile relative to peers. Overall, Step Co has a GF Score™ of 78/100 and is considered Fairly Valued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Step Co's Beneish M-Score compare to EDU and TAL?
According to the Education industry distribution chart, Step Co ranks #188 out of 243 companies for Beneish M-Score. This places Step Co in the lower half of its industry. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Beneish M-Score for an Education company?
A good Beneish M-Score depends on the Education industry context. However, Beneish M-Score should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Beneish M-Score mean?
A high Beneish M-Score can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. The Beneish M-score measures the likelihood of earnings manipulation. View historical data on Step Co and its competitors. Step Co's current Beneish M-Score is -2.18. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Step Co stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Step Co (TSE:9795) is currently considered Fairly Valued. The stock's GF Value™ is 円2,357.44, compared to a current price of 円2,237.00 — trading 5.1% below its estimated fair value. The current Beneish M-Score is -2.18. Step Co's overall GF Score™ is 78/100. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Beneish M-Score calculated?
Beneish M-Score is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Step Co (TSE:9795), the current Beneish M-Score is -2.18 as of Jun. 27, 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.

Is Step Co (TSE:9795) Overvalued in 2026?

Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Step Co stock appears to be undervalued. The current stock price of 円2,237.00 is trading 5.1% below its estimated GF Value™ of 円2,357.44. GuruFocus considers Step Co to be Fairly Valued.

Key valuation signals for TSE:9795:

  • Beneish M-Score: -2.18
  • GF Value™: 円2,357.44 vs. price of 円2,237.00 (5.1% below fair value)
  • GF Score™: 78/100

No single metric tells the full story. See the TSE:9795 stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.


Step Co Business Description

Address Fujisawa 602, Kanagawa Prefecture, Fujisawa, JPN, 251-0052
Step Co Ltd is a Japan-based company engaged in the operation of private preparatory schools. The company operates cram schools and after-school care facilities, and produces and edits educational materials, as well as prints and binds books. The company is engaged in providing high school entrance exam preparation courses, Teaching Materials Research Division produces manuscripts and original plates for teaching materials, academic programs, physical education, and shogi (Japanese chess), and other activities.
78GF Score

Get the complete analysis for TSE:9795

Beneish M-Score is just one metric. See GF Value™, 30-year financials, guru trades, warning signs, and more.

円2,237.00
Price
円2,357.44
GF Value