How TDK Makes Money

TDK sells components to device and equipment makers rather than to consumers. It reports four segments. Energy Application Products, the largest at about 55% of FY2026 net sales, combines ATL's small-capacity lithium-ion polymer batteries for smartphones, tablets, laptops and wearables with power supplies for industrial and ICT equipment. Passive Components covers ceramic, aluminum electrolytic and film capacitors, inductors, high-frequency and piezo parts sold under the TDK and EPCOS brands, with the automotive market as a key customer base. Sensor Application Products includes InvenSense MEMS motion sensors and microphones, Micronas Hall-effect sensors and TMR magnetic sensors. Magnetic Application Products, about 10% of sales, makes HDD heads and suspension assemblies, where nearline drives for data centers drove strong growth in FY2026. Profits depend on volume, product mix and the yen: a weaker yen lifts reported results because about 90% of staff and most sales are overseas. Battery profits are also seasonal, following smartphone launch cycles in the second half of the calendar year.

Under its medium-term plan, TDK is steering growth toward three themes it calls DX, EX and AI-related demand: components and sensors for AI servers and data centers, batteries and power supplies for devices and industrial equipment, and passive components and sensors for electrified vehicles and renewable energy. In practice that means expanding nearline HDD head capacity, growing MEMS microphone and sensor sales (MEMS sensors returned to profit in FY2026), extending ATL into mid-sized batteries for products such as energy storage and power tools, and exiting low-return lines such as EV power supply development. TDK also continues to fund materials research, including small oxide-based solid-state batteries it has announced for wearables, and pays a semiannual dividend.