< The 2015 All-Japan Research Team

Total Appearances: 12

Analyst Debut: 2004

Masahiro Nakanomyo, 54, makes it four years in a row in the pole position, largely on the strength of his “deep industrial sector analysis and the broadest coverage in the group,” according to one advocate. With the continued popularity and advancement of smartphone cameras, Japanese industry group Camera & Imaging Products Association expects digital camera shipments in 2015 to drop 20 percent year-over-year, the Barclays analyst reports. Although he believes that the decline will reach bottom this year for the single-lens reflex camera market — thanks to stable demand from both amateurs and professionals — Nakanomyo is more focused on other types of precision instruments makers. For example, he has assigned overweight ratings to Tokyo-based Topcon Corp., as well as Shimadzu Corp. and Horiba, both of which are headquartered in Kyoto. Topcon manufactures optical and surveying equipment, and the researcher foresees 20 to 30 percent operating profit growth in the next three years for the company thanks largely to its robust positioning in those segments. Specific drivers include current and potential demand from the information technology and agriculture industries, such as deals with Komatsu of Japan and the U.S.’s AGCO Corp., and expansion of its medical equipment business. As for Shimadzu, a developer of chromatographs and mass spectrometers, Nakanomyo advises that the market for these products is increasing with new applications in the medical field and research and development. Lastly, he’s bullish on Horiba — which provides specialty machinery and instruments for use in testing vehicle emissions, as well as environmental and medical applications — because construction of a new plant this year should boost profitability. For both Shimadzu and Horiba, Nakanomyo projects a 10 to 20 percent rise in operating profit over a three-year horizon.