Japanese Turnaround Situations, Short-Ideas, Azabu Research

Michael Allen

Japanese Turnaround Situations, Short-Ideas

Azabu Research

Azabu Research is a publishing and consulting firm focused on distressed equities in the Japanese market. We specialize in turnaround strategies, corporate combinations, divestitures, and restructuring.

Publisher of the Tokyo Turnaround Letter, which conducts the most thorough research possible of publicly available information, including forensic tests for fraudulent overstatement of assets and understatement of liabilities, as well as rigorous market and industry analysis to assess the underlying strengths of the company’s products or services, the appropriateness of the company’s turnaround strategy, and the skill of its current management team. The average length of a report exceeds 25 pages of text and tables, excluding any disclosures or executive summaries.

We have more than 30 years of experience in applying this process to distressed equities in Japan. Additionally, subscribers have free access to detailed, yet easily navigated earnings models for the target company as well as the top five comparable companies, and unlimited access to the analyst for follow-up questions.

Azabu Research also conducts be-spoke research on a project basis, and provides consulting services to companies looking to restructure, divest, make acquisitions, go public, or improve investor sentiment toward their stock.

Independent Research and Consulting Firm

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>Simply Wall Street published an article on Aug 20, 2024, suggesting the fair value of Nextage was ¥1,772 or 16% below the previous day's closing price.</li>
<li>Yet, on the Simply Wall Street website’s stock page for Nextage, updated on August 26, they calculate the fair value at ¥5,726, or 189% above the close on Aug 19.</li>
<li>Both cannot be right. Here's an interesting window into how markets mis-price stocks.</li>
</ul>


Simply Wall Street published an article on Aug 20, 2024, suggesting the fair value of Nextage was ¥1,772 or 16% below the previous day's closing price.
Yet, on the Simply Wall Street website’s stock page for Nextage, updated on August 26, they calculate the fair value at ¥5,726, or 189% above the close on Aug 19.
Both cannot be right. Here's an interesting window into how markets mis-price stocks.


Nextage (3186): One Analyst, Two Valuations, Both Wrong

<ul>
<li>NextAge has, in just two short years, moved from number 3 to number 1 in the used car market in Japan. </li>
<li>It’s market share is still less than 7% and we no longer see any meaningful obstacle in the company’s path to 30% share within the next 8 years. </li>
<li>The stock underperformed Topix by 59% following a series of earnings misses, but we think all issues have been resolved. Fair value could be 3x the current price.</li>
</ul>


NextAge has, in just two short years, moved from number 3 to number 1 in the used car market in Japan. 
It’s market share is still less than 7% and we no longer see any meaningful obstacle in the company’s path to 30% share within the next 8 years. 
The stock underperformed Topix by 59% following a series of earnings misses, but we think all issues have been resolved. Fair value could be 3x the current price.


NextAge (3186):  Disruptive Business Model at Massive Discount

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events, Quiddity Advisors

Travis Lundy

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events

Quiddity Advisors

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>As designed, the JPX-Nikkei400 Index is something of a disaster. It aims to be slightly 'smart' vs other cap-weighted indices like TOPIX, but tracking error vs TOPIX is de minimus.</li>
<li>This year, in week 1, the ADD vs DELETE performance is positive. If we sector-hedge the ADDs vs DELETEs, it's doing even better.</li>
<li>This is probably due to relatively low pre-positioning, and cares. Momentum suggests one could be long ADDs vs DELETEs. And there is the perennial trade to watch out for.</li>
</ul>


As designed, the JPX-Nikkei400 Index is something of a disaster. It aims to be slightly 'smart' vs other cap-weighted indices like TOPIX, but tracking error vs TOPIX is de minimus.
This year, in week 1, the ADD vs DELETE performance is positive. If we sector-hedge the ADDs vs DELETEs, it's doing even better.
This is probably due to relatively low pre-positioning, and cares. Momentum suggests one could be long ADDs vs DELETEs. And there is the perennial trade to watch out for.


2022 JPX Nikkei 400 Rebal Update - Going the Right Way

Senior Technology Analyst, Japanese Equities, LightStream Research

Scott Foster

Senior Technology Analyst, Japanese Equities

Long-Short Analysis on Japan, Asia and the World

LightStream Research

LightStream conducts quantitatively rigorous and data-driven analysis with a focus on Japan and Asia.

We consistently cover the Tech, Consumer and Industrial sectors, and provide ECM and Events coverage more broadly.

We supplement traditional qualitative insights from company relationships with a robust quantitative foundation that examines as much historical data as is available.
We further refine the accuracy of our insights and calls through the use of alternative data to flesh out current trends, and through a valuation framework that emphasises non-superficial peer group selection and a proper attempt to understand the metrics and changes that have driven security valuations in the past.

<ul>
<li>The July 4 upward revision to FY Nov-22 sales and profit guidance appears to have been discounted, but the company's long-term growth potential has not.</li>
<li>Sales could more than double over the next several years as Nextage takes share in Japan's highly fragmented and consolidating used car market. Margins also have room to expand.</li>
<li>Prospective P/E ratio headed down from 18x this fiscal year to 12x and below on a medium-term view. </li>
</ul>


The July 4 upward revision to FY Nov-22 sales and profit guidance appears to have been discounted, but the company's long-term growth potential has not.
Sales could more than double over the next several years as Nextage takes share in Japan's highly fragmented and consolidating used car market. Margins also have room to expand.
Prospective P/E ratio headed down from 18x this fiscal year to 12x and below on a medium-term view. 


Nextage (3186 JP): Long-Term Potential Not Yet Discounted

Index Rebal/Special Situations, Quiddity Advisors

Janaghan Jeyakumar, CFA

Index Rebal/Special Situations

Index Rebalance

<div><p>JPX-Nikkei 400 is composed of common stocks whose main market is the TSE1, TSE2, JASDAQ, and Mothers sections (which will become the Prime Market, Standard Market, or Growth Market next April) of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. This is a free-float-adjusted market-value-weighted (capped) index composed of 400 constituents selected based on several factors including market capitalization, trading value, operating profits, and ROE.</p></div><div><p>A periodic review is conducted by the Index providers, the JPX Group and Nikkei Inc, in August every year. This review is conducted using the final business day of June as the base date. </p></div><div><p>Quiddity provides quantitative research on pre-event basket strategies surrounding this Index Rebalance event and others. Below is a look at potential Inclusions and Removals for the JPX-Nikkei 400 Rebalance to come in August 2022 based on trading data as of end-October 2021.</p></div>

JPX-Nikkei 400 is composed of common stocks whose main market is the TSE1, TSE2, JASDAQ, and Mothers sections (which will become the Prime Market, Standard Market, or Growth Market next April) of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. This is a free-float-adjusted market-value-weighted (capped) index composed of 400 constituents selected based on several factors including market capitalization, trading value, operating profits, and ROE.A periodic review is conducted by the Index providers, the JPX Group and Nikkei Inc, in August every year. This review is conducted using the final business day of June as the base date. Quiddity provides quantitative research on pre-event basket strategies surrounding this Index Rebalance event and others. Below is a look at potential Inclusions and Removals for the JPX-Nikkei 400 Rebalance to come in August 2022 based on trading data as of end-October 2021.

JPX-Nikkei 400 Rebalance 2022: Leader Board End-Oct 2021

Japan

NEXTAGE Co., Ltd. operates a used automobile business. Its main line of business is retail of used domestic cars but it also sells imported cars and SUV/vans. In addition, the company also operates an automobile maintenace business.

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Nextage Co Ltd (3186 JP)

Nextage (3186): One Analyst, Two Valuations, Both Wrong

Simply Wall Street published two valuations for Nextage (3186) that were more than 200% apart. We unpack what they got wrong in both cases.

Michael Allen

NextAge (3186): Disruptive Business Model at Massive Discount

Couche tard's bid for 7&i was made possible by a combination of a weak yen and an undervalued stock. NextAge is in a similar situation, but unlike...

Michael Allen

2022 JPX Nikkei 400 Rebal Update - Going the Right Way

JPX Nikkei 400 rebalance is going the right way in the 6 trading days so far, and it wasn't done on Day1 (which was lacklustre). It may be under...

Travis Lundy

Nextage (3186 JP): Long-Term Potential Not Yet Discounted

Recent upward revision to guidance discounted, but long-term growth potential yields a single-digit prospective P/E. Taking share in Japan's...

Scott Foster

JPX-Nikkei 400 Rebalance 2022: Leader Board End-Oct 2021

In this insight, we take a look at the potential Inclusions and Removals for the JPX-Nikkei 400 Rebalance to come in August 2022 based on trading...

Janaghan Jeyakumar, CFA

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