Senior Bank Analyst - Japanese Banks, Windamee Research

J. Brian Waterhouse

Senior Bank Analyst - Japanese Banks

Windamee Research

Japanese Banks

Equity Bottom-Up

Mizuho Financial Group / Equity Bottom-Up

Gotōbi (or 五十日 in Japanese) is any date with a ‘5’ or a ‘0’ in it.  In Japan, traditionally, it is a day when money owed is collected and accounts due are settled.  Fridays are always busy days commercially, but when Friday is also a gotōbi things get particularly hectic.  It is a busy day for the banks, too, with a noticeable rise in customer visits to branches and a surge in across-counter transactions, especially in cash and securities.Last Friday, 20th August 2021, was a gotōbi. Imagine, then, the horror that seized bank staff at all 450+ branches of Mizuho Bank (not to mention at its sister organisation Mizuho Trust Bank, where the same thing happened), as 09:00am bank opening time approached, customers were queuing up, and they realised that none of the computer terminals at their counters were working.  None of them; nationwide.Curiously, all the ATMs (source of two previous systems failures) were working normally, as was Mizuho Bank’s Internet banking platform, ‘Mizuho Direct’.  By 10:00am on Friday, most operations were back up and running (except for some foreign currency remittances) and by midday all systems appear to have returned to normal operation.  Management is still trying to establish the cause of the glitch.This now makes the 5th time in 2021 that Mizuho Bank, the principal commercial banking subsidiary of megabank holding company <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> (MHFG), has had a systems failure.  That it happened on a gotōbi was embarrassing enough in view of the inconvenience to the many customers visiting the bank’s branches at the time.  Doubly embarrassing for management, inspectors from the Financial Services Agency (FSA) were in the process of winding-up their detailed and long inspection of the bank over the four previous systems malfunctions, with a view to deciding whether the bank should be disciplined for the successive failures through the issuance of a Business Correction Order.  That issuance would now seem to be an inevitability.  A formal demand for a detailed report into the incident (報告微求命令 or hōkoku bikyū meirei in Japanese) has already been issued by the FSA to Mizuho Trust Bank as well as to the parent MHFG.Senior management clearly has much to do in the wake of this latest incident to restore Mizuho’s reputation among customers as a brand that is synonymous with reliability.As we have said in past Smartkarma Insights, MHFG’s lack of consistency, either in profit generation or management execution, makes this a difficult stock to recommend on fundamentals.  This latest systems débâcle will not improve its already battered reputation.  MHFG has time and again promised much but then has either failed to deliver or has surprised the market with sudden sweeping changes in strategy, requiring long time-horizons for implementation and where ultimately delivering value remains frustratingly elusive.Caveat Emptor! (May the Buyer Beware!) remains our advice to would-be investors in this enormous but highly volatile banking group.

Gotōbi (or 五十日 in Japanese) is any date with a ‘5’ or a ‘0’ in it.  In Japan, traditionally, it is a day when money owed is collected and accounts due are settled.  Fridays are always busy days commercially, but when Friday is also a gotōbi things get particularly hectic.  It is a busy day for the banks, too, with a noticeable rise in customer visits to branches and a surge in across-counter transactions, especially in cash and securities.Last Friday, 20th August 2021, was a gotōbi. Imagine, then, the horror that seized bank staff at all 450+ branches of Mizuho Bank (not to mention at its sister organisation Mizuho Trust Bank, where the same thing happened), as 09:00am bank opening time approached, customers were queuing up, and they realised that none of the computer terminals at their counters were working.  None of them; nationwide.Curiously, all the ATMs (source of two previous systems failures) were working normally, as was Mizuho Bank’s Internet banking platform, ‘Mizuho Direct’.  By 10:00am on Friday, most operations were back up and running (except for some foreign currency remittances) and by midday all systems appear to have returned to normal operation.  Management is still trying to establish the cause of the glitch.This now makes the 5th time in 2021 that Mizuho Bank, the principal commercial banking subsidiary of megabank holding company Mizuho Financial Group (8411 JP) (MHFG), has had a systems failure.  That it happened on a gotōbi was embarrassing enough in view of the inconvenience to the many customers visiting the bank’s branches at the time.  Doubly embarrassing for management, inspectors from the Financial Services Agency (FSA) were in the process of winding-up their detailed and long inspection of the bank over the four previous systems malfunctions, with a view to deciding whether the bank should be disciplined for the successive failures through the issuance of a Business Correction Order.  That issuance would now seem to be an inevitability.  A formal demand for a detailed report into the incident (報告微求命令 or hōkoku bikyū meirei in Japanese) has already been issued by the FSA to Mizuho Trust Bank as well as to the parent MHFG.Senior management clearly has much to do in the wake of this latest incident to restore Mizuho’s reputation among customers as a brand that is synonymous with reliability.As we have said in past Smartkarma Insights, MHFG’s lack of consistency, either in profit generation or management execution, makes this a difficult stock to recommend on fundamentals.  This latest systems débâcle will not improve its already battered reputation.  MHFG has time and again promised much but then has either failed to deliver or has surprised the market with sudden sweeping changes in strategy, requiring long time-horizons for implementation and where ultimately delivering value remains frustratingly elusive.Caveat Emptor! (May the Buyer Beware!) remains our advice to would-be investors in this enormous but highly volatile banking group.

Mizuho Financial Group (8411 JP):  Gotohbi Gremlins

Independent research on the U.S. markets, Baptista Research

Baptista Research

Independent research on the U.S. markets

Baptista Research is an independent financial research house focused on the U.S. markets. We provide equity research as well as credit research reports on the top-listed U.S. companies with most of our focus on technology, consumer goods and services, automobiles, industrials, oil and gas, pharma, and healthcare. Our research has served more than 3000 institutional investors including mutual funds, hedge funds, banks, family offices, and various buy-side firms. We operate a research subscription service where institutions, as well as retail investors, can have priority access to all our research. We also have a wide distribution of our research reports across some of the top global financial platforms. Apart from equity research and credit research, we also provide advisory services with respect to mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity/ venture capital fundraising, valuation reports, and investment management services for corporates.
Baptista Research is owned and managed by Ishan Majumdar, an ex-Venture Capitalist/ Investment Banker, a Chartered Accountant, and a Masters’ degree holder in Management from HEC Paris. Ishan has nearly a decade of experience in Mergers and Acquisitions, Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs), Venture Capital Investing, Corporate Strategy, and Valuation in front-office roles at the likes of BNP Paribas CIB, Credit Agricole CIB, Groupe Danone, and TIW Private Equity. He has worked on and closed multiple acquisition deals, leveraged buyouts, and start-up investment transactions.

Equity Capital Markets

International Business Machines / Equity Capital Markets

<ul><li>IBM touched the target price from our last report before witnessing the recent selloff as the company reported one of the best quarters in years.</li><li>It witnessed strong momentum in its cloud computing business gained through its Red Hat acquisition from back in 2019.</li><li>In this report, we have carried out a fundamental analysis of the historical financial statements of the company.</li></ul>

IBM touched the target price from our last report before witnessing the recent selloff as the company reported one of the best quarters in years.It witnessed strong momentum in its cloud computing business gained through its Red Hat acquisition from back in 2019.In this report, we have carried out a fundamental analysis of the historical financial statements of the company.

International Business Machines (IBM) - Investment Thesis

Value Investing

Vladimir Dimitrov, CFA

International Business Machines / Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>IBM's almost at par with the market performance over the course of 2021 could prove to be short-lived.</li>
<li>In spite of the glimpse of hope in the Q2 2021 results, the financial situation of IBM remains quite challenging.</li>
<li>IBM still lacks a solid strategy in how to turn around its infrastructure business, while Red Hat is still expected to do all the heavy lifting.</li>
</ul>


IBM's almost at par with the market performance over the course of 2021 could prove to be short-lived.
In spite of the glimpse of hope in the Q2 2021 results, the financial situation of IBM remains quite challenging.
IBM still lacks a solid strategy in how to turn around its infrastructure business, while Red Hat is still expected to do all the heavy lifting.


Semiconductors, Memory and SSDs Specialist, Objective Analysis

Jim Handy

Semiconductors, Memory and SSDs Specialist

Objective Analysis

Objective Analysis offers third-party independent market research and data for the semiconductor industry and investors in the semiconductor industry.

Semiconductors, Memory and SSDs

Intel's rumored bid to acquire GOLBALFOUNDRIES is a good move to achieve the company's current goals, but as this analyst has discussed in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/intel-reveals-plan-to-restore-process-leadership" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a prior Insight</a>, those goals are very difficult to rationalize.

Intel's rumored bid to acquire GOLBALFOUNDRIES is a good move to achieve the company's current goals, but as this analyst has discussed in a prior Insight, those goals are very difficult to rationalize.

Figuring Out the Intel/GLOBALFOUNDRIES Deal

TMT & Consumer Independent Equity Research Analyst, Obex Capital Research

Aaron Gabin

TMT & Consumer Independent Equity Research Analyst

TMT & Consumer Independent Equity Research

Obex Capital Research

“Obex” is Latin for Barriers to Entry. Obex Capital Management’s investment philosophy is driven by an intense focus on which business model’s Barriers to Entry are able to withstand the ever increasing competitive disruption in the TMT and Consumer Sectors.

Intel has more product delays, Coursera's chief competitor is acquired. IBM's email doesn't work and Redhat chief departs. Amazon tries to form a rebel alliance.<div class="content-highlight">Obex’s fundamental research process is focused on secular change in the TMT and Consumer sectors. We seek to differentiate between fundamental business analysis and security analysis. Before deciding if a security’s pricing and positioning merit a long or short position, we analyze the four pillars of business fundamentals (Secular Factors, TAM, Competitive Advantage, Business Model) in order to determine if this is a “good” or “not so good” opportunity.  </div>

Intel has more product delays, Coursera's chief competitor is acquired. IBM's email doesn't work and Redhat chief departs. Amazon tries to form a rebel alliance.Obex’s fundamental research process is focused on secular change in the TMT and Consumer sectors. We seek to differentiate between fundamental business analysis and security analysis. Before deciding if a security’s pricing and positioning merit a long or short position, we analyze the four pillars of business fundamentals (Secular Factors, TAM, Competitive Advantage, Business Model) in order to determine if this is a “good” or “not so good” opportunity.  

TMT Weekly: 4 Things That Stood Out the Week of 7/2/​2021

United States

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) provides computer solutions through the use of advanced information technology. The Company's solutions include technologies, systems, products, services, software, and financing. IBM offers its products through its global sales and distribution organization, as well as through a variety of third party distributors and resellers.

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International Business Machines (IBM US)

Mizuho Financial Group (8411 JP): Gotohbi Gremlins

Mizuho Bank has suffered its 5th systems failure so far this year, and the FSA is not amused. Neither should shareholders be. Caveat Emptor! (May...

J. Brian Waterhouse

International Business Machines (IBM) - Investment Thesis

IBM touched the target price from our last report before witnessing the recent selloff as the company reported one of the best quarters in...

Baptista Research

IBM: More Of The Same

IBM's almost at par with the market performance over the course of 2021 could prove to be short-lived. In spite of the glimpse of hope in the Q2...

Vladimir Dimitrov, CFA

Figuring Out the Intel/GLOBALFOUNDRIES Deal

Should Intel acquire GLOBALFOUNDRIES as has been rumored? While this would help Intel to achieve its stated goals more rapidly, those goals seem...

Jim Handy

TMT Weekly: 4 Things That Stood Out the Week of 7/2/2021

Intel has more product delays, Coursera's chief competitor is acquired. IBM's email doesn't work and Redhat chief departs. Amazon tries to form a...

Aaron Gabin

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52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

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Mizuho Financial Group (8411 JP): Gotohbi Gremlins

Mizuho Bank has suffered its 5th systems failure so far this year, and the FSA is not amused. Neither should shareholders be. Caveat Emptor! (May...

J. Brian Waterhouse

International Business Machines (IBM) - Investment Thesis

IBM touched the target price from our last report before witnessing the recent selloff as the company reported one of the best quarters in...

Baptista Research

IBM: More Of The Same

IBM's almost at par with the market performance over the course of 2021 could prove to be short-lived. In spite of the glimpse of hope in the Q2...

Vladimir Dimitrov, CFA

Figuring Out the Intel/GLOBALFOUNDRIES Deal

Should Intel acquire GLOBALFOUNDRIES as has been rumored? While this would help Intel to achieve its stated goals more rapidly, those goals seem...

Jim Handy

TMT Weekly: 4 Things That Stood Out the Week of 7/2/​2021

Intel has more product delays, Coursera's chief competitor is acquired. IBM's email doesn't work and Redhat chief departs. Amazon tries to form a...

Aaron Gabin

TMT Weekly: 4 Things That Stood Out the Week of 7/2/2021