Sumito Takeda UBS
second team Yuko Maruyama Nomura
third team Makoto Ueno Daiwa
Newcomer Sumito Takeda shoots straight in at No. 1. Praised by one money manager for being “forward-looking on Internet business,” the UBS analyst reiterated his buy on CyberAgent in August, at ¥89,200, citing increasing revenues, among other factors, at the Web-based media and advertising company. The stock skyrocketed 81.3 percent, to ¥161,700, and shot past the sector by 85.6 points, through February. Takeda, 34, earned a master’s degree in philosophy at Waseda University in 2001. He worked as a small-caps analyst at Daiwa Institute before joining UBS in 2006.
Yuko Maruyama of Nomura debuts in second place. “She worked in the industry, and it shows in her insight,” explains one buy-side backer. Maruyama initiated coverage of Otsuka Corp. in September with a buy recommendation, at ¥5,430; although by late February the stock had barely moved — up just 0.7 percent, to ¥5,470 — the analyst insists the company “will expand its role in the cloud-computing story.”
Daiwa’s Makoto Ueno, who drops from first place to third, “keeps his focus on the long term,” according to one satisfied client. Ueno reiterated his overweight on Oracle Corp. Japan in July, at ¥3,630, saying the company is “well-poised to emerge as a leader” in the burgeoning cloud-computing industry. The stock had floated to ¥4,115 by the end of February, a gain of 13.7 percent that bested the sector by 14.1 points.
