In today’s briefing:
- Taisho Pharma (4581) – Slouching Activism May Not Get This Bumped
- Lasertec (6920) Accelerated Block Offering – ¥60bn Likely Easily Taken Up
- Lasertec Placement – Opportunistic Selldown Will Be Easily Digested by the Market
- Initiation – Arara (4015 JP)
- Aequitas Japan IPOs + Placements Broker Performance 2023
- Micoworks scores US$24.5M to expand its marketing platforms into SEA | e27
Taisho Pharma (4581) – Slouching Activism May Not Get This Bumped
- Six+ weeks ago, the founding family which controls a 33% stake in cash-rich Taisho Pharmaceutical Holdin (4581 JP) announced a Tender Offer MBO to buy out minorities.
- ¥8,620/Share is 0.85x PBR but the takeover is at 0.72x operating assets with net debt at zero That’s low – comps are 2+x book and twice the EV/EBITDA ratio.
- But the scourge that is cross-holding investors blindly following management means they have 61-63% before this gets started, and only one small firm has voiced an objection.
Lasertec (6920) Accelerated Block Offering – ¥60bn Likely Easily Taken Up
- Today after the close, there was word of an Accelerated Block Offering by two banks on Lasertec Corp (6920 JP), selling ¥61+bn or US$425mm of shares.
- The Nikkei 225 hit a new 34-year high today, and this caused some tech stocks and high-weights to perform very well vs their peers.
- This should cause the deal to get taken up easily. HOWEVER, it pays to know where the stock is. The register isn’t what volume tells you it might be.
Lasertec Placement – Opportunistic Selldown Will Be Easily Digested by the Market
- MUFG Bank and Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking are looking to raise around US$425m from selling their respective stakes in Lasertec Corp (6920 JP).
- Given the strong momentum on the stock, combined with the wave of shareholders ending their cross-shareholdings in Japan, we would argue that the deal is somewhat expected.
- Despite the remaining overhang on the stock, the deal would be easily digested by the market as well, representing just 0.14 days of the firm’s three month ADV.
Initiation – Arara (4015 JP)
- Overview: arara primarily serves retailers such as supermarkets and restaurant chains, offering Dokuji Pay (branded currency payment + marketing) and high-speed e-mail delivery software as a service.
- With its Dokuji Pay service, where clients are the issuers, the company has a certain level of distinction from its competitors in this niche field, and is solidifying its market position.
- Starting in March 2024, the company plans to integrate its digital signage- related business as well, aiming to quickly accelerate its retail marketing platform strategy to help retail stores strengthen their connection with consumers both inside and outside their stores.
Aequitas Japan IPOs + Placements Broker Performance 2023
- In this note, we will take a look at broker performance for Japanese IPOs and placements in 2023.
- The following dataset includes all Japanese IPOs and placements above US$100m, which amounted to a total of 32 deals.
- The deals you see in this note are based on our historical IPO and placement tracker. Feel free to drop us a message for additional information.
Micoworks scores US$24.5M to expand its marketing platforms into SEA | e27
- Micoworks, a marketing company that optimises communication between companies and their customers, has raised JPY 3.5 billion (~US$24.5 million) in a Series B funding round.
- Vertex Growth, a growth-stage VC fund anchored by Vertex Holdings, a subsidiary of Temasek, led the round.
- Participating investors include JAFCO Group, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, SMBC Venture Capital, and Mizuho Capital.
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