Japanese Equity Specialist, Ortus Advisors

Andrew Jackson

Japanese Equity Specialist

Ortus Advisors

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul>
<li>MLCC names Taiyo Yuden +22.6% and Murata +17.6% to new highs on bullish comments from Alethia.</li>
<li>Smaller photonic/optical names remain incredibly interesting with QD Laser and Hamamatsu Photonics Kk well below recent highs.</li>
<li>Softbank still -20% from early June highs despite yesterday's +10% move.</li>
</ul>


MLCC names Taiyo Yuden +22.6% and Murata +17.6% to new highs on bullish comments from Alethia.
Smaller photonic/optical names remain incredibly interesting with QD Laser and Hamamatsu Photonics Kk well below recent highs.
Softbank still -20% from early June highs despite yesterday's +10% move.


Japan Morning Connection: Riskier Momentum Trades Back in Play Post SpaceX IPO Nerves

<ul>
<li>Intel reportedly producing chips for Apple should also help Ibiden.</li>
<li>Kioxia shakes off Bain selling although there looks to be plenty of upside yet after recent correction.</li>
<li>China tensions simmer further over the w/e positive for defense, negative for tourism related.</li>
</ul>


Intel reportedly producing chips for Apple should also help Ibiden.
Kioxia shakes off Bain selling although there looks to be plenty of upside yet after recent correction.
China tensions simmer further over the w/e positive for defense, negative for tourism related.


Japan Morning Connection: Strong Month-End for Tech Sets Japan up for a Solid Start to Dec

Doing bespoke work since 2002....., Custom Products Group

Patrick Hansen

Doing bespoke work since 2002.....

Custom Products Group

Custom Products was started 14 years ago at Lehman Brothers by current co-founder Patrick Hansen, CFA. After 3 years at Lehman, Patrick moved the team to Macquarie Securities where Simon Rigney (co-founder) joined. 3 years ago we took Custom Products independent. 

Our core strength can be summed up three words. 1- Customization - we have very little off the shelf products and most work is done on a one on one bespoke basis. 2- Speed - We pride ourselves in our ability to get requests back to the client very quickly. 3- Confidentiality - We do not redistribute. There is no grace period where we wait a week and then mass blast. Any request stops with that client.

<p>We screened for names in Japan with a low PBR relative to its own history and also low relative to other names in the Sector. Large-cap names that made the list are  <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/154" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:154:1">Honda Motor Co Ltd (7267 JP)</a> with a 0.7x PBR, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/961" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:961:1">Nippon Steel &amp; Sumitomo Metal Corp (5401 JP)</a> with a 0.6x PBR and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/13613" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:13613:1">Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (7011 JP)</a> with a 0.7x PBR.</p><h2>Screen Criteria</h2><ol>
<li>Absolute PBR is less than 1.1x</li>
<li>Current PBR is currently 20% or more below the 5-year median PBR</li>
<li>Current PBR is 20% or more below the Sector Median</li>
</ol><h2>Screen</h2>…

We screened for names in Japan with a low PBR relative to its own history and also low relative to other names in the Sector. Large-cap names that made the list are  Honda Motor Co Ltd (7267 JP) with a 0.7x PBR, Nippon Steel &amp; Sumitomo Metal Corp (5401 JP) with a 0.6x PBR and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (7011 JP) with a 0.7x PBR.Screen Criteria
Absolute PBR is less than 1.1x
Current PBR is currently 20% or more below the 5-year median PBR
Current PBR is 20% or more below the Sector Median
Screen…

Names with Low PBR Relative to History and Sector....

<p>We had some inquiries around which Japanese companies had Sales in Korea and which names were correlated the most to KOSPI. In the charts below, we highlight the names that have a "Korea" segment in the geographic segment breakdown. Please note however that the majority of Japanese company will include Korea as part of their overall "Asia" segment. In the charts, the names with 0% of Sales are companies that did have a "Korea" segment, but it was consolidated into an overall "Asia" segment.</p>…

We had some inquiries around which Japanese companies had Sales in Korea and which names were correlated the most to KOSPI. In the charts below, we highlight the names that have a "Korea" segment in the geographic segment breakdown. Please note however that the majority of Japanese company will include Korea as part of their overall "Asia" segment. In the charts, the names with 0% of Sales are companies that did have a "Korea" segment, but it was consolidated into an overall "Asia" segment.…

Japanese Companies Tied to Korea with High Correlations to KOSPI....

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events, Quiddity Advisors

Travis Lundy

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events

Quiddity Advisors

Event-Driven

<div><p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/enplas-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:14524:1" rel="noopener">Enplas Corp (6961 JP)</a> makes plastics. They also have a variety of technological solutions which improve semiconductor performance. 5+years ago, their  biggest segment was their "optical" business which had 50% OPMs, but that has declined over the years to be a bit over 13% of revenues and OP has dropped commensurately. Now the plastics and semiconductors business are roughly similar in revenue size for the remaining 87%, the plastics business has made net zero OP over the past five years, and the semiconductor-related business has substantially lower margins than the optics business had. </p></div><div><p>It has been a real comedown. The company hit the jackpot in its optical business from 2013-2018 and now it is back where it stood 8 years ago in profit terms. </p></div><div>
<p>But the company has been buying shares back. Since the start of the fiscal year, they have bought back 42% of the Real World Float. Now they are aiming at roughly 19% of what is remaining with another buyback announced today. By end of February the active float in this name will have been cut by half in a year.</p>
<p>They are NOT playing around.</p>
<p>Much more below the fold.</p>
</div>

Enplas Corp (6961 JP) makes plastics. They also have a variety of technological solutions which improve semiconductor performance. 5+years ago, their  biggest segment was their "optical" business which had 50% OPMs, but that has declined over the years to be a bit over 13% of revenues and OP has dropped commensurately. Now the plastics and semiconductors business are roughly similar in revenue size for the remaining 87%, the plastics business has made net zero OP over the past five years, and the semiconductor-related business has substantially lower margins than the optics business had. It has been a real comedown. The company hit the jackpot in its optical business from 2013-2018 and now it is back where it stood 8 years ago in profit terms. 
But the company has been buying shares back. Since the start of the fiscal year, they have bought back 42% of the Real World Float. Now they are aiming at roughly 19% of what is remaining with another buyback announced today. By end of February the active float in this name will have been cut by half in a year.
They are NOT playing around.
Much more below the fold.


Enplas (6961) - Yet Another BIG Buyback, Longer-Term Implications Still There

Japan

ENPLAS CORPORATION designs, develops, manufactures, and markets engineering plastic products for electronic components, video and audio equipment, and automobile parts.  The Company also makes semiconductor equipment, such as integrated circuits (IC) testing devices and burn-in sockets.

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Enplas Corp (6961 JP)

Japan Morning Connection: Riskier Momentum Trades Back in Play Post SpaceX IPO Nerves

With Iran deal signed and SpaceX IPO complete, riskier momentum trades are in focus with optical and space names offering entry points after heavy...

Andrew Jackson

Japan Morning Connection: Strong Month-End for Tech Sets Japan up for a Solid Start to Dec

Sentiment for all things AI back on the rise, boosting glass fiber makers. A rebound for memory and Japanese SPE names. Kioxia may keep rising...

Andrew Jackson

Names with Low PBR Relative to History and Sector....

We screened for names in Japan with a low PBR relative to its own history and also low relative to other names in the Sector. Large-cap names that...

Custom Products Group

Japanese Companies Tied to Korea with High Correlations to KOSPI....

We had some inquiries around which Japanese companies had Sales in Korea and which names were correlated the most to KOSPI. In the charts below, we...

Custom Products Group

Enplas (6961) - Yet Another BIG Buyback, Longer-Term Implications Still There

Enplase (6961 JP) continues its mammoth and impactful buybacks. The last one was 11% of the voting rights in 40 calendar days. This one looks like...

Travis Lundy

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