PSA Weekly Research Round-Up to 27 February 2026

Weekly Comment Summary
At Japan’s one-time “Zombie” companies, schadenfreude comes at a precise temperature and a HALO effect.
Pelham Smithers highlights the once given up for dead companies of old that have come back to life thanks to AI.

PSA Weekly Contents at a Glance
Reports / Flash Notes Summaries
1. Japanese Autos: Earnings Recovery in FY26, but Not an Easy Ride.

Company / Sector / Thematic Comments
Technology: Consumer Electronics, Gaming
1. Video Games Round-Up
2. Resident Evil Requiem Launch: What to Look For and What We Got
3. GOAT At No. 1 In US Box Office
4. Will Nacon’s Insolvency Trigger a New Wave of Video Game Maker Bankruptcies?
5. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Technology: Industrial Electronics / Components / Semis & SPE / Precision
6. DRAM Prices Unchanged After Chinese Holiday as Chinese Client Negotiations Continue
7. Japan Government Unveils Rapidus Funding
8. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Chemicals / Materials
9. The Science and Economics Behind Nittobo’s Stock Price Surge [24 Feb]
10. Asahi Kasei to Acquire Aicuris Anti-Infective for US$921mil
11. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Autos / New Mobility
12. US Supreme Court Ruling: Consequences for Automakers
13. Toyota Shares Unwinding Planned
14. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Capital Goods / Machinery / Auto Parts
15. Nabtesco Hits Our Target Price
16. Heavies on China’s Export Control List
Internet / eCommerce
17. The Global Sell-off of Cybersecurity Stocks Hits Trend Micro
18. Rakuten Re-Commences Talks to Reorganise its Fin-Tech Business
19. DeNA to Sell Nintendo Shares and Buy Back its Own Shares
Enterprise Software / IT Services
20. Japanese SaaS Valuations on a Par with Global SaaS Giants. Is That Good or Bad?
21. Sansan AI Progress Survey Highlights Lack of Internal Database Readiness at Japanese Companies
22. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
Small- / Mid-Cap Insights
23. Lilycolor: Meeting Takeaway
24. Park24: Fate of UK to Be Announced on 18 March
Macro / Market / Strategy / Misc.
25. Macro Data Shows Japan’s Economy is Improving (a Bit)
26. Other News & Moves That Caught Our Eye
List of Recently Published PSA Notes & Reports
Important Disclosure Statement from Pelham Smithers Associates Limited


PSA in the Press
Market strategist Pelham Smithers features in the following Financial Times article:
Japan is the Ultimate Halo Trade
Excerpt:
• The Japanese stock market, notes the strategist Pelham Smithers, is rammed with companies that score poorly on standard investor return metrics but suddenly look attractive “due to the weird effect AI is having on both the economics of manufacturing and the destruction of moats in services”
• The pricing power now in the hands of the semiconductor industry, notes Smithers, has granted it to Japanese speciality materials makers like Mitsui Kinzoku, Nittobo and Dowa. These make products that few if any other firms can replicate to the specs required by state-of-the-art manufacturing processes, such as AI chips. “Markets that were worth millions are starting to be worth billions, and margins, which might perhaps have been 10% are set to be above 25%,” he says. Supply chain bottlenecks that are not yet obvious, he adds, soon will be and are often controlled by Japanese Halos. Japan is the ultimate Halo trade
• Autos / New Mobility analyst Julie Boote is quoted in the following Bloomberg article:
• Japan’s Nikkei Gains as AI Materials, Cables Offset Uncertainty – 24 Feb Bloomberg
• Excerpt: “Essentially, US import tariffs on autos have not changed,” as Japan’s agreement with the US set levies on the sector at 15%, said Pelham Smithers analyst Julie Boote in a note. “In theory, there should not be a reaction of Japanese auto stocks on the Supreme Court ruling,” although “confusion” around the outlook could weigh on sentiment, she added.

PSA Company Visits, Tours and Interviews
Visited: Lilycolor (9827 JT), Amvis Holdings (7071 JT)
Presentations at: Asahi Kasei (3407 JT), Teijin (3401 JT), Adeka Corp (4401 JT), Park24 (4666 JT)