Atsushi Takagi Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities Co.
Repeat second-teamer Atsushi Takagi is so trusted that he has “the ear of investors and company executives alike,” according to one backer. In November the Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities Co. analyst pounded the table on small-cap Kandenko Co. — a Tokyo-headquartered infrastructure provider that’s active in power distribution — as a bargain at ¥314, citing steady demand for power-grid upgrades. The stock sizzled up 35.7 percent, to ¥426, through February. “He is well respected in political and policy circles,” adds one ally. — Ben Mattlin