Japan Stocks: Furukawa, Kojima, Mitsubishi Heavy, Nomura, Yahoo

June 12 (Bloomberg) — Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 154.49, or 1.6 percent, to 10,135.82 as of the close in Tokyo. The following were among the most active shares in the Japanese market today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.

Fukuyama Transporting Co. (9075 JT) rallied 6 percent to 427 yen. The ground transportation and moving company was lifted by two levels to “overweight” from “underweight” by Takuya Osaka, a Tokyo-based analyst at Morgan Stanley.

Furukawa Co. (5715 JT) climbed 8.6 percent to 127 yen, its highest since Oct. 3, as investors expect a gain in copper prices will boost profit at the Japanese maker of metal products and machinery.

Green Hospital Supply Inc. (3360 JT) slumped 5.8 percent to 55,100 yen. The medical equipment distributor was cut to “underperform” by “neutral” by Eri Kaneko, a Tokyo-based analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co., the securities firm bought by Bank of America Corp.

Gulliver International Co. (7599 JT) climbed 6 percent to 3,900 yen, the highest since April 2008. The used-car dealer was raised to “outperform” from “neutral” by Jiro Kojima, an analyst at Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Japan Best Rescue System Co. (2453 JT) fell 2.8 percent to 43,150 yen, after rising as much as 2 percent to 45,300 yen earlier today. Hikari Tsushin Inc. (9435 JT), a mobile- telecommunication subscription agency, said it will acquire 10 percent of Japan Best Rescue, which provides plumbing, lock repair and other services. The companies will also form a services venture. Hikari Tsushin slid 0.2 percent to 2,040 yen.

Joyo Bank Ltd. (8333 JT) added 3.3 percent to 497 yen. The regional bank was boosted to “buy” from “hold” by Hironari Nozaki, an analyst at Nikko Citigroup Ltd.

JTekt Corp. (6473 JT) jumped 7.2 percent to 979 yen, while NTN Corp. (6472 JT) rose 2.4 percent to 385 yen, the highest since Nov. 5. The bearing makers had their stock price estimates raised by Hideyuki Mizuno, a Tokyo-based analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co. Merrill boosted JTekt’s stock price estimate to 950 yen from 650 yen, maintaining a “neutral” rating. The brokerage lifted its target price on NTN to 330 yen from 200 yen, keeping its “underperform” rating unchanged. CLSA Asia Pacific Markets upgraded JTekt to “buy” from “underperform.”

Kentucky Fried Chicken Japan Ltd. (9873 JT) advanced 2.5 percent to 1,692 yen, its biggest rise since Oct. 31. The restaurant chain’s operating profit probably more than doubled in the year’s first half on cost cuts and the success of a spicy chicken promotion, Nikkei English News reported.

Kojima Co. (7513 JT) jumped 7.3 percent to 572 yen. Edion Corp. (2730 JT), Japan’s second-biggest electronics retailer, may form a capital alliance with smaller rival Kojima, the Asahi newspaper reported, citing an unidentified person familiar with the plan. The two companies may eventually merge, the newspaper said. Edion added 2 percent to 655 yen.

Konami Corp. (9766 JT) rose 2.4 percent to 1,809 yen. The game maker was boosted to “buy” from “hold” by Soichiro Fukuda, an analyst at Nikko Citigroup Ltd.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. (7011 JT) climbed 4.6 percent to 409 yen. Japan’s largest heavy-machinery maker said it’s in talks with the Queensland government to build a cleaner- burning, next-generation coal-fired power plant in the Australian state. Also, Mitsubishi Heavy was boosted to “strong outperform” from “market perform” by Teruo Isozaki, an analyst at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., who cited possible earnings growth due to eco-friendly issues. The brokerage set a stock price estimate of 500 yen in new coverage.

NEC Electronics Corp. (6723 JT) dropped 2.7 percent to 981 yen. The chipmaker may post an operating loss of about 20 billion yen ($205 million) for the April-June quarter, Nikkei English News reported.

Nomura Holdings Inc. (8604 JT) gained 5.2 percent to 917 yen, the highest since Nov. 11. Japan’s biggest brokerage was boosted to “buy” from “neutral” by Mitsumasa Okamoto, a Tokyo-based analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co.

Ohara Inc. (5218 JT) slumped 4.7 percent to 1,403 yen. The optical glassmaker posted a first-half net loss of 740 million yen, compared with a 1.89 billion yen profit a year earlier. It had a 39 percent fall in sales and higher costs for its research and development.

SBI Holdings Inc. (8473 JT) rose 4.4 percent to 18,930 yen, the highest since Sept. 1. The venture capital firm said it will create a $50 million fund with a unit of Malaysia’s state-run Permodalan Nasional Berhad to invest in Asian companies. SBI and PNB Equity Resource Corp. will each control half of the fund. Tokyo-based SBI made the announcement in a press release.

Teijin Ltd. (3401 JT) advanced 7.9 percent to 287 yen, its highest since Oct. 6. The fiber maker is raising the operating rates at its polycarbonate resin plants in China and Singapore to full capacity as demand recovers, Nikkei English News said, citing President Shigeo Ohyagi. Plants were operating at less than half capacity in February, the report said.

Token Corp. (1766 JT) surged 8.2 percent to 2,890 yen, the highest since Oct. 3. The homebuilder said full-year net income rose 44 percent to 4.91 billion yen, beating its outlook by 11 percent, with a 28 percent gain in sales.

Works Applications Co. (4329 JQ) rallied 4.5 percent to 55,600 yen. The software developer said it will retire 6.06 percent of its outstanding shares on June 30.

Yahoo Japan Corp. (4689 JT) jumped 8.3 percent to 30,550 yen, the largest increase since Oct. 29. The operator of Japan’s most-visited Internet portal was raised to “buy” from “hold” by Hiroshi Kamide, a Tokyo-based analyst at KBC Securities, who cited cost reductions that may help Yahoo Japan maintain its profitability.

from: bloomberg.com