Tokyo - Toyota Motor raised its profit forecast after surging sales of RAV4 sport utility vehicles and Lexus luxury models, putting it on track to become the first Japanese company to top 3 trillion yen ($25.7 billion) in annual operating profit.
Net income may rise to 2.27 trillion yen for the year ending in March, from an earlier forecast for 2.25 trillion yen, the company said in a statement Friday.
Analysts predict the world’s largest automaker will probably earn 3.07 trillion yen in operating profit in the 12-month period, the average of 26 estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
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Third-quarter operating profit was 722.3 billion yen, missing the average 789 billion yen analyst estimate compiled by Bloomberg. The company will buy back up to 0.74 percent of its shares.
BLOOMBERG