It’s three straight years at No. 3 for Yoshinao Ibara of Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities Co. “His research notes — especially his work on cross-border analysis — are essential reading for any investor trying to understand the sector,” declares one Tokyo-based booster. Case in point: Ibara began urging clients to overweight Komatsu, a construction machinery manufacturer headquartered in Tokyo, in June. He continues to see upside potential after nine visits to China to examine how the company’s tractors and heavy equipment are used in the field, concluding that heavy utilization of existing machinery — “a leading indicator of new machine demand” — portends strong growth prospects. By mid-March the stock had bolted 26.2 percent, from ¥1,753 to ¥2,213. Even so, it lagged the sector by 15.6 percentage points. — Paul Sweeney |
Industries — Machinery: Third