< The 2016 All-Japan Research Team

Total appearances: 9

Team debut: 2008

Rising one tier to second place, Nomura’s Yasuhiro Narita “always tries to understand what’s going on in the market, not just in his sector, and that gives him a smart sense of the relative strength of each investment,” observes one money manager. “He would make a good investor.” Of the seven domestic trading companies under the 41-year-old researcher’s purview, Itochu Corp. is a favorite. He has for years advised clients to buy the shares because the company maintains “a strong business portfolio” that gives it dependable profits even when commodities prices are sinking, explains Narita. Japan’s third-largest general trader, after Tokyo’s Mitsubishi Corp. and Mitsui & Co., Osaka-based Itochu operates across a host of industries that includes chemicals, commodities, construction materials, food and textiles. In the 12 months through mid-March, its stock rose 7.9 percent, to ¥1,425, outstripping the Japanese sector by 18.7 percentage points. He pegs Itochu at ¥1,900. “Narita-san goes beyond commodities pricing to focus on the quality of cash flow and intangible assets,” affirms another supporter.