Industries - Software/Business - First Team

Satoru Kikuchi Deutsche Securities

The buy side says: “Kikuchi excels at evaluating stock prices.”

Satoru Kikuchi rockets from third place to first. The Deutsche Securities analyst follows 19 companies and is expanding coverage to include consumer-oriented information technology — that is, products such as mobile phones and tablets that consumers own primarily for personal use but which they also use in conjunction with their jobs. Kikuchi’s “wide analysis is not only interesting but important in understanding the disruptive technologies and practices in enterprise IT,” says one ally. The 42-year-old is bullish on the sector. “Japanese IT services and software demand has been growing as use of IT is expanding in Japanese companies,” he explains. “We can expect margins to improve in 2012 due to increased utilization of engineers and a decrease in loss-making projects.” Among the companies Kikuchi recommends are three Tokyo-based IT consulting and systems integration services providers: Nomura Research Institute, NTT Data Corp. and Otsuka Corp. Kikuchi has “a solid understanding of the systems integration business,” cheers one client. Adds another: “Kikuchi has been covering the sector a long time and knows the background of the industry and each company.” — Pam Baker

Related