2016 All-Japan Research Team: Electronics/Precision Instruments, No. 2: Tetsuya Wadaki

Tetsuya Wadaki

Nomura

First-Place Appearances: 1

Total Appearances: 13

Analyst Debut: 2004

It’s three years in a row at No. 2 forTetsuya Wadaki. The Nomura researcher is applauded for “how good he is at talking about the industry’s long-term investment thesis,” as one portfolio manager says. Another backer deems him “conversant with business trends.” Polarization is the watchword for Wadaki, 47, because “we think changes in the industry structure will result in the emergence not only of increasingly advanced semiconductor production equipment but also of non-cutting-edge SPE, as the flip side to that coin.” Each type of technology is in demand for different purposes, he explains. The so-called Internet of Things, or networking of everyday physical objects, requires low-end condenser, semiconductor, sensor and surface acoustic wave devices, the analyst adds, while high-end technologies are evolving to fulfill demands for higher speeds, lower power consumption and higher-density integrated circuits. With this in mind, Wadaki — who monitors 20 Japanese precision instruments manufacturers — favors Tokyo’s Disco Corp. The company makes abrasive and precision industrial machinery for cutting and grinding purposes, among other products, and he predicts growth in both customers and sales for its advanced equipment and technologies, in addition to rising demand for dicers used in sensor production and electronic parts. Moreover, he foresees a boom in semiconductors producers’ capital expenditure for NAND flash memory.