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Summary

• Japanese shareholder activism is booming. The number of activist shareholder proposals has increased exponentially over the past five years.
• It’s easy to find Japanese companies that trade below fair value. But it’s more difficult to find management teams that care about their shareholders. Activists can help convince them to do the right thing.
• I’m impressed by shareholder activists Oasis Management, ValueAct and Symphony Financial. It’s worth paying attention to their fund holdings.
• Among the Japanese stocks currently targeted in activist campaigns, Seven & I, Sumitomo Osaka Cement, JAFCO, Sun Corp, and T. Hasegawa stand out, in my view.