2016 All-Japan Research Team: Broadcasting, No. 2: Yoshitaka Nagao

Yoshitaka Nagao

Nomura

First-Place Appearances: 1

Total Appearances: 6

Analyst Debut: 2011

Yoshitaka Nagaoof Nomura is one of only two analysts to earn a top-three showing in more than one sector this year. He captures second place on both this roster, rising from No. 3, and the Internet lineup, where he is making his debut appearance. (Hidekatsu Watanabe of Mizuho Securities Group claims first place in Health Care & Pharmaceuticals and second in OTC & Small Companies.) Monitoring 21 Japanese companies across the Internet and media spaces, Nagao, 37, has a generally neutral stance. “We forecast that advertising demand will maintain steady growth of around 2 percent year over year in 2016,” he says. “With broadcasters we are focusing on competition for audience ratings.” His top pick in the latter group is Tokyo’s Fuji Media Holdings, whose earnings, he notes, have been depressed owing to recent weakness in viewership. However, conditions are ripe for share price upside if those ratings enter a recovery phase, the researcher contends. He also recommends that investors favor two Tokyo-based production and distribution companies, Toei Co. and Toho Co. “In the movie area we look for earnings to remain buoyant at Toei, which is due to release a movie based on the One Piece manga series from summer 2016,” Nagao explains, “and Toho, where we expect to see further high-quality releases.”