Head of Research, IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Sumeet Singh

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>Following up on our earlier cross-shareholding notes, in this note we look at <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/mizuho-financial-group-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:219:1" rel="noopener">Mizuho Financial Group (8411 JP)</a>'s cross-shareholding.</li>
<li>Mizuho had a stake over US$100m in at least 34 listed Japanese stocks, amounting to a total of around US$7bn.</li>
<li>In this note, we take a look at its stakes in various companies to see which ones could possibly be candidates for further selldowns.</li>
</ul>


Following up on our earlier cross-shareholding notes, in this note we look at Mizuho Financial Group (8411 JP)'s cross-shareholding.
Mizuho had a stake over US$100m in at least 34 listed Japanese stocks, amounting to a total of around US$7bn.
In this note, we take a look at its stakes in various companies to see which ones could possibly be candidates for further selldowns.


Mizuho Cross-Shareholding - US$11bn of Cross-Shareholding, with at Least US$2bn to Sell over FY24-26

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>Japan’s chemicals industry is finally undergoing a long-overdue consolidation that should lead to fewer companies, higher profitability, and less volatility.</li>
<li>These changes may be driving significant mispricing. Like most segments, RoE drives most of the variance in PBR, but with more frequent and far larger outliers.</li>
<li>KH Neochem, Daicel, and Mitsui Chemicals are the undervalued outliers, and all three are positioned for rapid growth in our view.</li>
</ul>


Japan’s chemicals industry is finally undergoing a long-overdue consolidation that should lead to fewer companies, higher profitability, and less volatility.
These changes may be driving significant mispricing. Like most segments, RoE drives most of the variance in PBR, but with more frequent and far larger outliers.
KH Neochem, Daicel, and Mitsui Chemicals are the undervalued outliers, and all three are positioned for rapid growth in our view.


Long-Overdue Consolidation in Japanese Chemicals Drives Growth & Mispricing

Global Materials | Industrials | Commodities

Rahul Jain

<ul>
<li>Company: Founded in 2000 through the merger of Hoxan, Daido Sanso, and Kyodo Oxygen, Air Water is a diversified conglomerate spanning industrial gases, healthcare, food logistics, and energy.</li>
<li>Future Plans: Driving growth through semiconductor gases, UPS systems for AI/data centers, and hydrogen infrastructure, while scaling healthcare and logistics.</li>
<li>Valuation: Trades at ~7x EV/EBITDA and 11x forward P/E, a deep discount to global peers (Linde, Air Liquide at 14–17x EV/EBITDA).</li>
</ul>


Company: Founded in 2000 through the merger of Hoxan, Daido Sanso, and Kyodo Oxygen, Air Water is a diversified conglomerate spanning industrial gases, healthcare, food logistics, and energy.
Future Plans: Driving growth through semiconductor gases, UPS systems for AI/data centers, and hydrogen infrastructure, while scaling healthcare and logistics.
Valuation: Trades at ~7x EV/EBITDA and 11x forward P/E, a deep discount to global peers (Linde, Air Liquide at 14–17x EV/EBITDA).


Air Water Inc. (TSE: 4088) – Diversified Japanese Industrial Gas & Healthcare Player

Executive Director, Metrical Inc

Aki Matsumoto

Executive Director

Independent Leading Corporate Governance Research

Metrical Inc

METRICAL INC. is an independent leading Corporate Governance research firm in Japan where Corporate Governance is increasingly recognized as an important element on corporate management in these days. Thus, CG research and solutions would become an essential component of global capital markets and play important to contribute to transparency of the markets and maximize shareholders’ value in Japan. 

METRICAL INC. provides Corporate Governance research and analysis including rating services, and  also offers investment research and IR services with solutions and customized profound research on CG and IR issues.

<ul>
<li>Wouldn't the shareholders of Mitsubishi Chemical want to either TOB for the growth of the subsidiary or invest the cash from the sale of shares in a value-generating business?</li>
<li>It's difficult to exclude the influence of the parent company in business decisions that impact significantly on the parent's earnings and shareholding. Is continued parent-subsidiary listing desirable for subsidiary's shareholders?</li>
<li>The management of Nippon Sanso wants to continue the parent-subsidiary listing, but their small shareholding may make it difficult to manage the company from the same perspective as the shareholders.</li>
</ul>


Wouldn't the shareholders of Mitsubishi Chemical want to either TOB for the growth of the subsidiary or invest the cash from the sale of shares in a value-generating business?
It's difficult to exclude the influence of the parent company in business decisions that impact significantly on the parent's earnings and shareholding. Is continued parent-subsidiary listing desirable for subsidiary's shareholders?
The management of Nippon Sanso wants to continue the parent-subsidiary listing, but their small shareholding may make it difficult to manage the company from the same perspective as the shareholders.


Ownership of Company Stock Is a Key in Managing the Company with the Same Goals as Shareholders

Technical Analyst, Vermilion Research

Joe Jasper

Technical Analyst

Technical and Quantitative Research

Vermilion Research

Vermilion’s objective is to deliver timely, actionable, and unique technical research to professional investors through the application of our various technical indicators.

Our research strategists seek to highlight securities which we believe are at major inflection points, based on our various technical and quantitative indicators, and offer asymmetric risk/return profiles. Our unique research methodology, centered on relative strength, enables our strategists to deliver superior investment recommendations.

Our process begins by organizing the universe of actively traded stocks into discrete sectors, then into industry groups. We then apply our technical and quantitative tools to identify developing price trends. Once attractive trends are identified within a selected sector or group, we screen for individual stocks which we believe offer the best risk/reward profile. We provide a historical perspective that often reveals, through our long-term charts, how price patterns often repeat themselves over time.

Technical Analysis

US Treasury (10 Yr Generic) / Technical Analysis

<ul>
<li>In our two previous Int'l Compass reports (Aug. 18 &amp; 24) we discussed that we were buyers on the pullback to the major $93 support level on MSCI ACWI (ACWI-US).</li>
<li>$93 on ACWI is 1+ year base support and a level that coincides with the 10-month uptrend. We remain bullish as long as the ACWI-US is above $93.</li>
<li>$93 on ACWI-US is likely the low for this pullback as long as the 10-year Treasury yield and DXY can stay below respective resistance levels (4.3%-4.35% and $103.70-$105.70).</li>
</ul>


In our two previous Int'l Compass reports (Aug. 18 &amp; 24) we discussed that we were buyers on the pullback to the major $93 support level on MSCI ACWI (ACWI-US).
$93 on ACWI is 1+ year base support and a level that coincides with the 10-month uptrend. We remain bullish as long as the ACWI-US is above $93.
$93 on ACWI-US is likely the low for this pullback as long as the 10-year Treasury yield and DXY can stay below respective resistance levels (4.3%-4.35% and $103.70-$105.70).


Further Declines in DXY, Sovereign Yields May Provide More Fuel for a Rally in Global Equities

Japan

Nippon Sanso Holdings produces various kinds of industrial gases including oxygen, argon, and nitrogen.  The Company also manufactures frozen foods and thermos.

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Nippon Sanso Holdings (4091 JP)

Mizuho Cross-Shareholding - US$11bn of Cross-Shareholding, with at Least US$2bn to Sell over FY24-26

Following up on our earlier cross-shareholding notes, in this note we look at Mizuho Financial Group (8411 JP)'s cross-shareholding.

Sumeet Singh

Long-Overdue Consolidation in Japanese Chemicals Drives Growth & Mispricing

Consolidation in Japan's chemicals industry leading to fewer companies, higher profitability, and potential for growth in undervalued outliers...

Michael Allen

Air Water Inc. (TSE: 4088) – Diversified Japanese Industrial Gas & Healthcare Player

Air Water, a diversified conglomerate, plans to drive growth in semiconductor gases, UPS systems, and hydrogen infrastructure etc. and trading at...

Rahul Jain

Ownership of Company Stock Is a Key in Managing the Company with the Same Goals as Shareholders

I would like to discuss the issues on the December 11 Nikkei article, "Nippon Sanso Holdings, Filial Son's Heartbeat: The Market Recommends...

Metrical Inc

Further Declines in DXY, Sovereign Yields May Provide More Fuel for a Rally in Global Equities

We continue to believe $93 on $ACWI is likely the low for this pullback as long as the 10-year Treasury yield $TNX and $DXY can stay below their...

Vermilion Research

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)

Mizuho Cross-Shareholding - US$11bn of Cross-Shareholding, with at Least US$2bn to Sell over FY24-26

Following up on our earlier cross-shareholding notes, in this note we look at Mizuho Financial Group (8411 JP)'s cross-shareholding.

Sumeet Singh

Long-Overdue Consolidation in Japanese Chemicals Drives Growth & Mispricing

​Consolidation in Japan's chemicals industry leading to fewer companies, higher profitability, and potential for growth in undervalued outliers...

Michael Allen

Air Water Inc. (TSE: 4088) – Diversified Japanese Industrial Gas & Healthcare Player

​Air Water, a diversified conglomerate, plans to drive growth in semiconductor gases, UPS systems, and hydrogen infrastructure etc. and trading at...

Rahul Jain

Ownership of Company Stock Is a Key in Managing the Company with the Same Goals as Shareholders

I would like to discuss the issues on the December 11 Nikkei article, "Nippon Sanso Holdings, Filial Son's Heartbeat: The Market Recommends...

Metrical Inc

Further Declines in DXY, Sovereign Yields May Provide More Fuel for a Rally in Global Equities

We continue to believe $93 on $ACWI is likely the low for this pullback as long as the 10-year Treasury yield $TNX and $DXY can stay below their...

Vermilion Research

Consolidation in Japan's chemicals industry leading to fewer companies, higher profitability, and potential for growth in undervalued outliers...

Air Water, a diversified conglomerate, plans to drive growth in semiconductor gases, UPS systems, and hydrogen infrastructure etc. and trading at...