THIRD TEAM

Yoshinao Ibara Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities Co.

Unranked since 2007, Yoshinao Ibara of Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities Co. takes third. Ibara initiated coverage of SMC Corp. in June 2009 with an overweight rating, at ¥10,318, making the case that the Tokyo-based supplier of pneumatic factory equipment would benefit from the rapid business expansions of its customers throughout Asia. The stock jumped 35.2 percent through February 2011, to ¥13,950, and bested the sector by 11.6 percentage points over the period. “He’s diligent about reporting on company meetings, sometimes even e-mailing during the meetings,” shares one supporter.

Polling and tabulation of data as well as reporting on the sector profiles were completed before the March 11 Tohoku earthquake.