Maya Patel

Strong fundamentals drive guidance revision for SECOM

SECOM Co., Ltd. has revised its guidance upwards for FY25, tracking its strong performance in 1HFY25 and aided by favourable industry trends. The revised guidance, released on November 8, 2024, along with first-half results, now anticipates consolidated sales of JPY1.2tn, operating income of JPY140.8bn and a net income of JPY104.6bn.

January 28, 2025 at 06:52 am

Azbil Corporation’s JPY15bn buyback program gains pace

Azbil has announced its plans to repurchase its own stock to the value of JPY15bn or 24mn shares from November 26, 2024, to March 24, 2025. The company further plans to invest treasury shares worth approximately JPY10bn in human capital and cancellation of approximately JPY5bn of treasury shares. Accordingly, the company repurchased 1.95mn shares for JPY2.39bn in December 2024.

January 28, 2025 at 05:37 am

Netwealth Group reports record net FUA inflows in December

Netwealth has reported Funds under Administration (FUA) of AUD24bn in the December 2024 ended quarter, compared to AUD18bn registered in the prior corresponding period. The rise in FUA was aided by record-level net FUA inflows of AUD4.5bn during the period. The group also reported an increase in total number of accounts to 151,437 during the period end, from 132,826 a year earlier.

January 27, 2025 at 09:04 am

Acquisition of JASTEC to complement JEOL’s growth strategy

JEOL reached an agreement to acquire all shares of Japan Superconductor Technology from Kobe Steel on November 22, 2024. With their expertise in the manufacture and sale of superconducting wires and magnets, Superconductor Technology will add significant value to JEOL by strengthening its development and production systems, and overall competitiveness. Notably, the transaction was expected to be finalised by January 6, 2025.

January 24, 2025 at 08:11 am

TSMC’s new U.S. plant unlikely to get first access to latest tech

TSMC has updated that its new plant in the U.S. is unlikely to get first access to the latest and most advanced chip technology, which would be rolled out in factories in Taiwan initially. The company’s CEO has cited complex compliance issues, local construction regulations and various permitting requirements in the U.S. for the delay in implementation of the latest tech.

January 23, 2025 at 07:52 am

Meituan partners with Walmart for express delivery in China

Meituan has collaborated with U.S. retailer Walmart to launch an express shopping service in mainland China. The announcement, made on December 17, 2024, states that all of Walmart China’s Stores are now listed on the Meituan platform. Moreover, the partnership allows for the delivery of items within 30 minutes.

January 22, 2025 at 08:42 am

Hindustan Zinc reports record metal production in third quarter

Hindustan Zinc announced its production numbers for 9MFY25 on January 2, 2025. Mined metal production increased 1% YoY in 9MFY25 to 784kt, supported by improved mined metal grades and mill recovery. Refined metal production was also highest at 783kt during the period, rising 3% YoY, aided by better plant availability and operational parameters. Within refined metal production, refined zinc production grew 3% to 613kt, and lead production surged 4% to 170kt.

January 21, 2025 at 10:03 am

MOU between Japan Exchange and Authentic Indication

JPX has signed a MOU with Authentic Indication, K.K. to enhance the execution environment for block trades through the provision of Indication of Interest (IOI) services. This platform allows investors to gauge demand for block trades discreetly, without revealing their own interests to the market.

January 20, 2025 at 09:13 am

Share buybacks signal positive management view for Kikkoman

Kikkoman Corporation has provided an update on its share buyback plan on January 6, 2025. Accordingly, the company has repurchased 3.9mn shares during the period October 25, 2024, to December 31, 2024, representing 0.42% for JPY6.7bn. The buyback is a part of the program to acquire up to 11mn shares or 1.15% of outstanding shares, worth JPY15bn by FY25 end.

January 17, 2025 at 05:55 am

Bharat Electronics strengthens order book through recent wins

Bharat Electronics, in a recent exchange release on January 13, 2024, announced that it has secured additional orders worth INR5.6bn, since its last disclosure on December 23, 2024. The latest order inflow, comprising a range of defence and electronics equipment, bolsters the current FY25 order book to INR103.6bn.

January 16, 2025 at 08:40 am

Tokyo Electron revises guidance aided by WFE market recovery

Tokyo Electron has revised its FY25 estimates upwards and expects to significantly outperform market growth, driven by a recovery in the Wafer Fab Equipment (WFE) market, and strong demand for AI-related devices. The company now expects FY25 net sales of JPY2,400bn, compared to previous forecasts of JPY2,300bn; operating income of JPY680bn, from JPY627bn; and net income of JPY526bn, from JPY478bn. The company announced the revision in 2QFY25 release published on November 12, 2024.

January 15, 2025 at 07:51 am

Fast Retailing’s share price slides despite solid results

Fast Retailing announced its 1QFY25 results on January 9, 2025, reporting strong increases in revenue and profit. However, the company’s shares tanked by over 6% the following day, owing to muted performance in Mainland China, Hong Kong and the Taiwan market. Nevertheless, analysts hold a favourable view of the company and expect net sales to register a CAGR of 9.2% over the period FY24-27 to reach JPY4,037.7bn.

January 14, 2025 at 07:52 am

Nitta Mold acquisition by Asahi Intecc to boost design capabilities

Asahi Intecc Co., Ltd. announced its decision to acquire all 980 shares of Nitta Mold Co., Ltd. on November 14, 2024. The acquisition would aid the parent in product design support activities, and would also support molding and assembly, thereby stabilizing the Group’s supply of products.

January 13, 2025 at 07:43 am

Surge in stock prices post first half results for Nitto Denko

Nitto Denko released results for 1HFY24 on October 28, 2024. The company’s performance overpassed estimates, as a result of which the stock price surged by 3.2% from the day’s lows to settle at JPY 2,434.5 on October 28. The stock sustained its momentum on the following day and increased further by 3%. Since the declaration of the H1 results, the stock has delivered total returns of around 11% till date, indicating bullish sentiments amongst investors.

January 10, 2025 at 07:25 am

FTSE All-World Index addition and earnings boosts Lotes Co. shares

Lotes Co was added to FTSE All-World Index on September 22, 2024. Post the inclusion, the stock has been on an uptrend, registering its all-time high of TWD2,015 on December 5, and delivering returns of over 34% till date. Price surge was also supported by positive 3QFY24 results, which witnessed a revenue enhancement of 24.9% YoY to TWD8.1bn, while EBITDA increased 27.4% YoY to TWD3.3bn, with margins rising to 40.9% despite higher R&D and SG&A expenses. Consequently, net income grew 10.2% YoY to TWD2.1bn.

January 09, 2025 at 10:31 am

Organo Corporation shares surge following positive outlook

Organo Corporation (Organo) has revised its guidance for the second time in a row for FY25 (ending March 2025). The company published the new guidance on November 1, 2024, and now expects orders of JPY170bn (up from the original guidance JPY155bn), and revenue of JPY165bn, up from the original guidance of JPY155bn and 1QFY25 guidance of JPY160bn. Investors reacted positively to the news, with the share price jumping over 14% the next day and increasing by around 28% since the announcement.

January 07, 2025 at 09:52 am

Pal Group's H1 success spurs higher full-year guidance

PAL GROUP Holdings CO., LTD. (PAL Group) published its revised guidance for FY25 (ended February 2025) on October 14. The company now estimates consolidated sales of JPY209.2bn, up from JPY203.5bn and has revised gross profit margin to 55.6% from 55.2%. Additionally, PAL Group raised its operating profit guidance to JPY22.9bn, with margins of 11.0%, up from the earlier JPY20.1bn, with a 9.9% margin.

January 03, 2025 at 07:00 am

HCL Tech: Acquisition of CTG assets expected to boost market presence

HCL Technologies Limited (HCL Tech) announced the completion of the purchase of certain assets from Hewlett Packard Enterprise's (HPE) Communications Technology Group (CTG) on December 2, 2024. The closure of the transaction, which was initiated in May 2024 with an agreement of USD225mn in an all-cash deal, strengthens HCL Tech’s leadership in the telecom services markets.

December 26, 2024 at 07:40 am

National Aluminium Company: China's policy shift boosts global aluminium prices

National Aluminium Company Ltd. (NALCO) stock moved up sharpy by 8% on 18th November 2024, in line with a similar up move of aluminium prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME). The movement was on account of news of China withdrawing its 13% export tax rebate on aluminium and copper products for its domestic manufacturers from 1st December 2024. The move is expected to reduce Chinese exports of aluminium products, thereby supporting global aluminium prices. China is a key player in the global metals market and accounts for more than half of production and consumption of Aluminium, so the change is expected to significantly impact the global aluminium market.

December 23, 2024 at 07:09 am

ZOZO, Inc. : Steady 1H performance

ZOZO, Inc. on October 31, 2024, reported 1HFY25 consolidated sales of JPY98.8bn, up 9.5% YoY, driven by enhanced user engagement and the successful execution of promotional campaigns. Operating profit reached JPY30.5bn with 5.3% YoY growth, maintaining a robust margins of 30.5%, due to effective cost management. Accordingly, net income surged by 12.2% YoY to JPY44.3bn, underscoring its consistent profitability. For FY25, management forecasts an 8.8% increase in net sales to JPY214.40bn, with a projected profit attributable to owners of JPY45.20bn, up 1.9% YoY and basic EPS is JPY152.21. Following the earnings release, Jefferies revised its target price to JPY4,840 from JPY4,000, maintaining a “Hold” recommendation.

December 19, 2024 at 11:23 am

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd: Overall auto sales up 12%

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (M&M) recently announced that its overall auto sales for the month of November 2024 increased by 12% to 79,083 vehicles, including exports. In the Utility Vehicles (SUVs) sales was up 16% YoY to 46,222 units in the domestic market and overall, 47294 vehicles, including exports. In the same month, the Group also witnessed the launch of its much-anticipated Electric Origin SUVs — the BE6e and XEV9e. On the other hand, the company’s farm equipment segment nudged ahead with a sale of 31,746 tractor units, compared to 31,069 units during November 2023.

December 18, 2024 at 09:41 am