TOKYO : A group of investors led by prominent activist shareholder Yoshiaki Murakami said a push by the Tokyo bourse for better capital efficiency will strengthen their crusade to reduce Japan's unusually high number of chronically undervalued stocks.
The move is a testament that firms can no longer brush aside stock underperformance and must end the decades-long practice of asset-hoarding, said Hironao Fukushima, representative director of City Index Eleventh, who works closely with Murakami. The group, which has led a number of high-profile campaigns, holds stakes in roughly 50 companies, including about 10 where their ownership exceeds 5 per cent, although the number is constantly changing, Aya Murakami said in the same interview.