2. Summary
Alba is a premier, Tokyo-based consultant to foreign
investors. We provide independent research that focuses not
only on company financials, but also industry structures, the
state of the economy, the political climate, the regulatory
environment, changes in accounting rules, and other factors
that affect equity values.
Alba provides complete access to Japanese companies,
including briefings, preparation of questionnaires,
interpretation assistance, visits on behalf of clients, and
three-party calls.
We have a vast network of contacts in many industries,
backed by our long experience in Japanese markets.
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3. Alba’s Premier Services
Access & Analysis
• Company Access and Analysis 4
• Accounting and Related Analysis 5
• News Monitoring 6
• Idea Generation 7
• Other Services 8
-financial modeling and updates
-stock screening
-on demand customized reports
Expert Network & Field Work
• Expert Network 9
• Field Work 10
About us 11
Appendix 12-14
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4. Access and Analysis
Alba offers in-depth company visits and teleconferences with
managements and IR officers. We have deep, consistent experience in
these activities:
In the past three years we have conducted or attended
– 300+ visits and teleconferences
– 150+ analyst meetings
Appointments are made through long-standing relationships with
Japanese companies, utilizing contacts from former IBJ, Mizuho, and IR
professionals.
Our service includes company research prior to visits (with preparation of
questions) and translation during the meeting, followed promptly by
meeting memos with our remarks/evaluation after the visit/call.
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5. Accounting and Related Analysis
We provide quick responses to urgent questions from
customers.
Our interpretation includes Japanese Accounting Rules,
Taxation, and Land Appraisal, etc.
<Service samples>
-Description of accounting standards on retirement benefits
-Interpretation of new inventory evaluation method
-Appraisal of land prices using our database and official land prices
-Fair value analysis of security holdings
-NAV analysis on stocks, value-per-share analysis
-Geographical analysis -- store search and comps study for retailers
=>see appendix for samples
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6. News Monitoring
We offer updates every day on news and events for our client
portfolios through monitoring and analysis of Nikkei Quick*
access, print media, investor message boards, blogs, and
follow-up calls to the company.
* Nikkei’s Quick is highly appreciated by investors in Japanese stocks, but the service is provided only in
Japan.
< Examples of news updates>
- Speeches by management in newspapers and magazines
- Rumors among Japanese individual investors
- News regarding lawsuits
- Influence of earthquakes (which are frequent in Japan) on factories
- Announcement of share buybacks, management guidance
- Major changes in stock ownership
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7. Idea Generation
We provide ideas that focuses not only on company financials,
but also industry structures, the state of the economy, the
political climate, the regulatory environment, changes in
accounting rules, and other factors that affect equity values.
<One of our innovative ideas>
We studied Japanese regulations and their impact on Japanese stocks. This was made possible through
our relationship with leading professors in the public policy and political science at University of Tokyo
and Gakushuin University. This approach enabled our virtual portfolio to outperform the market from
May/08 through Sep/08 by 20%
<Other ideas>
- Analysis on regional banks, comparing NPLs, allowances, and loan-to-deposit rates
- Cyclicality analysis ~approx. ads 4years, construction machinery 7years, machine tools 13 years
- Research into the practices of Japanese wholesalers in industries such as meat, confectionaries, and
alcohol.
- Supply chain analysis
- Urban development, comparing age and ownership of buildings =see appendix
- Impact of management guidance, whether bullish or bearish
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8. Other services
Alba’s offerings also include
-financial modeling and updates
-stock screening
-on demand customized reports
=>Reduces portfolio manager’s burden from labor
intensive work
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9. Expert Network
Alba’s network includes lawyers, CPAs, bureaucrats, doctors
and many senior experts in various industries.
< Our contact network extends into the following industries>
-Construction, Steel, Chemical, Retail, Advertising, Pharmaceutical, Chemical,
Glass, Construction Machinery, Machine Tool, Land Transportation, Airline,
Marine Transportation, Shipping, Media and Communication, Life Insurance,
Casualty Insurance, Mega Bank, Regional Bank, Securities, Trust Bank, Venture
Capital, Game and Entertainment, and Utilities (Gas, EPCO)
In addition to the active employees and managements, we
also utilize the services of retired Japanese staff. These long-
time employees have sharp eyes and well-honed instincts,
but they are not constrained by the information use rules and
oversight that current employees experience.
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10. Field Work
Through the use of our cost-efficient and
productive part-time investigators and data
analysts, Alba provides field work, detective
work, and market research.
<Research Samples>
-We interviewed several retailers to get a better understanding of the Wii and NDS inventory levels for
our client holding Nintendo stock.
-Another project was a price comparison of home appliances to compare several electric retailers.
-We also exposed a fraudulent company in our client’s portfolio which later was shown to be involved in
criminal activity.
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11. About us
Founder and CEO
Aska Takeuchi has been providing Japanese equity research to overseas investors since 2006 in a wide variety of industries --
telecommunication, construction, real estate, games & entertainment, machinery, materials, retail, food – and on many small- to
mid-size companies. She has more than 11 years’ experience in investment and corporate banking with IBJ and Mizuho Financial
Group, which included four years as a credit analyst covering the telecom, machinery, food & beverage, and retail sectors. She
also has significant experience as a fund analyst, reviewing and grading the performance of institutional investors as fund
managers. Ms. Takeuchi is a graduate of the University of Tokyo and was an intern at McKinsey & Company. She is a Chartered
Member of the Security Analysis Association of Japan (CMA).
Senior Analyst
Toko Sakuta worked at Investor Relations where she met various overseas institutional investors and Accounting divisions at Asahi
Glass Company. She holds a B.A. in economics from the University of Tokyo and an M.B.A. from INSEAD. She is a candidate for
Chartered Member of the Security Analysts Association of Japan.
Advisors
Chako Ando Chako Ando has over 10 years of investment banking and capital markets experience. Ms. Ando was a VP in the M&A
department of Daiwa America; manager of a venture capital investment fund for the Industrial Bank of Japan; and a VP of credit control
with Sumitomo Bank Capital Markets. Ms. Ando has also been a CFO of an online trading system provider and a consultant for numerous
Silicon Valley firms. She is a CFA Charter holder and has passed the Series 65 investment advisor exam. A Tokyo native, Ms. Ando
obtained her MBA at Stanford. http://www.chakoando.com/
Bob Schneider is editor of Data Interactive, the Hitachi XBRL blog. He worked in the equity research department of Morgan Stanley for six
years, including three years as Supervisory Analyst of the firm’s Tokyo office. As senior analyst and writer for a Tokyo IR firm, he wrote
the MD&As for more than 100 annual reports of over 30 companies. He spent two years as an external auditor and is a CPA (inactive
status) in the State of New York. Mr. Schneider has passed both the Series16 (supervisory analyst) and Series 65(investment adviser)
exams. He holds an MBA from Columbia University in accounting.
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14. Appendix
Sample ~Geographical Analysis
Geographical analysis
includes checking the
sites/addresses of retail
stores, factories, and
facilities utilizing our
database and measuring
competitiveness by
analyzing the trend of
same-store sales,
traffic*ticket, S&B, GOP,
rent trends, and other
indicators.
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