Canon Inc. (CAJPY) Stock Price & How to Invest
Last updated October 2026
Short answer
CAJPY is the US over-the-counter ADR for Canon Inc., the Japanese maker of office printers, cameras, medical imaging and semiconductor lithography equipment. It reads as a cash-rich, dividend-paying value stock (roughly 11x forecast earnings, a ~3.6% yield and heavy buybacks) rather than a growth story, with its upside tied to imaging, lithography and the yen.
CAJPY stock price
As of 2026-10-16, Canon Inc. (CAJPY) last closed at $30.33, up 2.7% over the past year. Over the past 52 weeks it has traded between $25.09 and $32.26.
Prices are daily closing prices from Yahoo Finance and may be delayed. For the live quote, check your broker or Canon Inc.'s investor relations page. Walnut is informational, not investment advice.
What does Canon Inc. (CAJPY) do?
Canon Inc. is a Tokyo-headquartered manufacturer founded in 1937 that now runs four businesses. Printing (office multifunction printers, laser and inkjet printers, and commercial production presses) is still the largest, with ~¥2.49 trillion of 2025 sales, a little over half the group, and a ~10% segment margin built on toner, ink and service contracts. Imaging (EOS mirrorless and compact cameras, lenses and Axis network surveillance cameras) grew ~12.5% to ~¥1.05 trillion in 2025 at a ~16% margin and is now the most profitable growth engine. Medical (CT, MRI, ultrasound and X-ray systems through Canon Medical Systems, the former Toshiba Medical) brought in ~¥581 billion, and Industrial covers semiconductor lithography steppers, nanoimprint lithography and display manufacturing equipment. Its primary listing is on the Tokyo Stock Exchange under code 7751. Canon voluntarily delisted from the New York Stock Exchange in 2016, and US investors now hold it through the CAJPY American Depositary Receipt, which trades over the counter, with each ADR representing one ordinary share.
The investment picture is one of steady, cash-generative maturity. Canon posted record 2025 sales of ~¥4.62 trillion (+2.5%) and operating profit of ~¥455 billion, a jump of ~63% that largely reflected recovery from a 2024 base depressed by a one-off medical impairment. For 2026 it guides sales of ~¥4.8 trillion (+3.8%) and operating profit of ~¥465 billion, a forecast it raised in July after a record second quarter in which operating profit rose ~35% on strong compact and network camera demand plus refunds of extra US tariffs. Offsetting that, medical sales fell on supply disruptions and industrial sales dropped ~15% on weak display equipment demand. Management returns most of its cash: a ~¥160 annual dividend targeting a ~40% payout and a ¥200 billion buyback completed early in September 2026. The ADR trades around $29, valuing the company near ~$25 billion, so the market prices it as a value and income name rather than a growth one.
What's driving Canon Inc. (CAJPY)?
1. Imaging and network cameras
Imaging was the standout segment in 2026, with second-quarter sales up ~17.7% as demand for compact cameras surged among younger buyers and the Axis-led network camera business kept growing on security and video analytics demand. This builds on 2025, when imaging sales rose ~12.5% to ~¥1.05 trillion at a ~16% segment margin, the highest in the group. Canon has been raising compact camera production to meet demand that outran supply. Whether this camera revival proves durable or fades as a fashion cycle is one of the bigger swing factors for group earnings over the next two years.
2. Semiconductor lithography and nanoimprint
Canon sells i-line and KrF steppers used for mature-node chips, power semiconductors, image sensors and advanced packaging, and lithography shipments grew in 2026 even as display equipment weakened enough to pull industrial sales down ~15% in the second quarter. Its nanoimprint lithography tools, which stamp circuit patterns rather than projecting them with light, are a long-dated bet on a lower-cost, lower-power alternative for certain patterning steps. Canon shipped its first commercial nanoimprint system to a US research consortium in 2024. Progress here would give the company a growth narrative that its printing business cannot.
3. Printing cash flow and margin discipline
Office and production printing is a slowly shrinking but highly profitable business, driven by consumables and service contracts on a large installed base. In 2025 printing sales slipped ~1.1% to ~¥2.49 trillion and segment profit fell ~12% as US and European customers delayed laser printer purchases amid tariffs and economic uncertainty. Canon has been shifting toward commercial production printing and cutting costs to defend margins. This segment funds most of the dividend and buybacks, so its rate of decline matters more to shareholders than its growth.
4. Capital returns and the yen
Canon targets a ~40% payout ratio, pays ~¥160 a year in dividends and completed a ¥200 billion buyback in September 2026 after a ¥100 billion program in 2025, which steadily shrinks the share count and lifts earnings per share. Because most sales are overseas, a weaker yen lifts reported profit, and Canon credited ~¥34 billion of its 2026 operating profit forecast to favorable currency moves, assuming ¥150 to ¥155 per dollar in the second half. That same sensitivity can reverse quickly if the yen strengthens, for example if the Bank of Japan keeps raising rates.
What are the risks to Canon Inc. (CAJPY)?
Printing is in long-term structural decline as offices print less, so Canon must keep finding growth elsewhere to offset a segment that still produces over half its sales. The medical segment has suffered production disruptions and component shortages in 2026 and has historically earned thin margins (~5.6% in 2025) relative to the price Canon paid for Toshiba Medical. Higher memory chip prices, energy and materials costs linked to the Middle East situation and shifting US trade policy all pressure margins; Canon's 2026 plan includes ~¥35 billion of expected Middle East headwinds and ~¥6 billion from memory costs, offset by ~¥37.5 billion of tariff relief that may not recur. Competition is intense in every segment, from Sony in cameras to ASML and Nikon in lithography and Siemens Healthineers and GE HealthCare in medical. For CAJPY holders specifically, returns are earned in yen and converted to dollars, so a stronger yen can raise the ADR price while hurting Canon's reported profit, and vice versa; dividends are paid in yen, converted by the depositary (minus fees) and may be subject to Japanese withholding tax. The ADR trades over the counter rather than on an exchange, which can mean wider bid-ask spreads and less liquidity than the Tokyo shares.
Is CAJPY a buy or a sell?
We give no verdict on Canon Inc.. Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.
The case for buying. Imaging and network cameras. Imaging was the standout segment in 2026, with second-quarter sales up ~17.7% as demand for compact cameras surged among younger buyers and the Axis-led network camera business kept growing on security and video analytics demand.
The case against. Printing is in long-term structural decline as offices print less, so Canon must keep finding growth elsewhere to offset a segment that still produces over half its sales.
Read the full bull and bear case on CAJPY, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.
How is Canon Inc. (CAJPY) valued? (approximate, October 2026)
A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see Canon Inc.'s investor relations page or your broker.
- Revenue (TTM): ~¥4.7 trillion (2026 guidance ~¥4.8 trillion)
- Operating profit (2026 guidance): ~¥465 billion (~9.7% margin)
- Net income (2026 guidance): ~¥340 billion
- Market cap: ~$25 billion (ADR ~$29, 1 ADR = 1 share)
- Forward P/E: ~11x
- Dividend yield: ~3.6% (¥160 annual forecast)
Canon trades at a low multiple relative to US hardware peers, reflecting low single-digit sales growth and the drag of a mature printing business that is more than half of revenue. The valuation case leans on cash returns: a ~40% payout target and repeated buybacks, including ¥100 billion in 2025 and ¥200 billion completed in September 2026, which together retire a few percent of the share count a year. Analyst targets on the Tokyo shares averaged around ¥4,800 in recent listings, modestly above the ~¥4,400 trading level. Figures are approximate and the dollar values move with the yen.
Who competes with Canon Inc. (CAJPY)?
Office printing and imaging
Ricoh, HP Inc., Xerox, Konica Minolta, Kyocera, Brother, Epson and Fujifilm Business Innovation compete for office printers, production presses and the service contracts behind them, while Sony, Nikon and Fujifilm are the main rivals in cameras and lenses, with Sony leading full-frame mirrorless.
Semiconductor lithography
ASML dominates advanced lithography with EUV and immersion DUV systems, and Nikon competes with Canon in mature-node steppers. Canon's position is in i-line and KrF tools for power chips, sensors and packaging, plus its nanoimprint alternative.
Medical imaging
Siemens Healthineers, GE HealthCare and Philips are the global leaders in CT, MRI and ultrasound, with Fujifilm and United Imaging also competing. Canon Medical Systems is a strong player in CT but smaller than the big three overall.
What stocks are similar to Canon Inc. (CAJPY)?
Other names that sit close to CAJPY: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.
How to invest in Canon Inc. (CAJPY)
There are three common ways to get CAJPY exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it, which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so CAJPY sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.
Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where CAJPY fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.
New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.
The bottom line on Canon Inc. (CAJPY)
CAJPY offers a mature, shareholder-friendly Japanese industrial at a modest multiple, where the investment case rests on cash returns and steady margins more than on rapid growth, with the yen as a constant second variable.
More on Canon Inc. (CAJPY)
Whether CAJPY is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is CAJPY a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the CAJPY stock forecast.
For income investors, whether CAJPY pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does CAJPY pay a dividend? And to weigh CAJPY against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: CAJPY vs HP and CAJPY vs SONY.
Wondering how CAJPY fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.
Investing in Canon Inc. with AI
Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how CAJPY fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.
FAQ
What is CAJPY?
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CAJPY is the ticker for Canon Inc.'s American Depositary Receipt, a certificate that lets US investors own Canon shares in dollars through a US brokerage account. Canon's primary listing is on the Tokyo Stock Exchange under code 7751. The ADR used to trade on the New York Stock Exchange as CAJ, but Canon voluntarily delisted from the NYSE in 2016, and the ADR has traded over the counter as CAJPY since then. Each CAJPY ADR represents one ordinary Canon share, so its dollar price tracks the Tokyo price converted at the current yen exchange rate. Because Tokyo and New York trading hours do not overlap, the ADR often reacts in the US morning to moves that already happened in Tokyo overnight.
What does Canon actually make money from?
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Canon has four segments. Printing, which includes office multifunction printers, laser and inkjet printers and commercial production presses, is the largest at ~¥2.49 trillion of 2025 sales, and much of its profit comes from toner, ink and service rather than the machines themselves. Imaging covers mirrorless and compact cameras, lenses and network surveillance cameras through its Axis subsidiary, and produced ~¥1.05 trillion of sales at a ~16% margin. Medical sells CT, MRI, ultrasound and X-ray systems through Canon Medical Systems (~¥581 billion). Industrial makes semiconductor lithography equipment and display manufacturing tools. Most of Canon's sales come from outside Japan, mainly the Americas, Europe and Asia, which is why currency moves have such a large effect on its reported results.
How did Canon perform in 2026?
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Canon reported a record second quarter in July 2026, with sales of ~¥1.18 trillion (+3.6%) and operating profit up ~35% to ~¥159 billion, helped by strong compact and network camera demand and refunds of additional US tariffs. First-half sales rose ~3.5% to ~¥2.27 trillion. Medical sales fell on production disruptions and component shortages, and industrial sales dropped ~15% as display equipment demand weakened. Canon raised its full-year operating profit forecast to ~¥465 billion, on sales of ~¥4.8 trillion and net income of ~¥340 billion, while flagging higher memory and energy costs as headwinds. For context, full-year 2025 operating profit was ~¥455 billion on ~¥4.62 trillion of sales, so the 2026 plan implies only modest growth.
Does CAJPY pay a dividend?
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Yes. Canon has a long record of paying dividends and forecasts ~¥160 per share for 2026, targeting a payout ratio of around 40% of earnings. At a share price near ¥4,400 that works out to a yield of roughly 3.6%. For CAJPY holders, the dividend is declared in yen and converted to dollars by the depositary bank, so the dollar amount received depends on the exchange rate at payment time. Depositary fees may be deducted, and Japanese withholding tax typically applies, which US investors may be able to claim as a foreign tax credit depending on their situation.
How is CAJPY valued compared with peers?
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At around $29 per ADR, Canon is valued near ~$25 billion, or roughly 11 times its 2026 earnings forecast, with a dividend yield around 3.6%. That is a low multiple compared with many US technology hardware companies and well below semiconductor equipment leaders like ASML. The discount reflects Canon's slow overall growth and its reliance on printing, a mature business in structural decline. Investors who see the stock as undervalued typically point to its cash returns, its lithography and camera businesses, and its steady margins, while skeptics point to the limited growth outlook. Analyst price targets on the Tokyo shares have averaged around ¥4,800, only modestly above where the stock trades.
How does the yen affect CAJPY?
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The yen matters in two opposite directions. Canon earns most of its revenue abroad but reports in yen, so a weaker yen raises its reported sales and profit; Canon credited ~¥34 billion of its 2026 operating profit forecast to favorable currency moves. For a US holder, though, the ADR's dollar value is the yen share price converted at the current rate, so a weaker yen also shrinks the dollar value of each share. These effects partly offset each other, but the net result is that CAJPY returns in dollars can differ noticeably from Canon's returns in Tokyo. Canon's second-half 2026 plan assumes ¥150 to ¥155 per dollar, so a sharp move outside that range would likely show up in forecast revisions.
What are the risks of owning CAJPY through the OTC market?
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Because CAJPY trades over the counter rather than on a major US exchange, it can have lower trading volume and wider bid-ask spreads than exchange-listed stocks, particularly at the open or during volatile periods. Price discovery largely happens in Tokyo, so the ADR can move overnight on news released during Japanese trading hours. Canon also files less detailed reporting with US regulators since leaving the NYSE, though it publishes full English-language results on its investor site. Some brokers limit fractional trading or charge extra fees on OTC ADRs, and depositary fees apply. Walnut is not an investment adviser, so this describes the structure rather than suggesting any action.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Financial figures on this page are approximations; always verify current numbers with Canon Inc.'s investor relations page or your broker before making investment decisions.