Hisahiro Yamaoka Nomura Securities Co.

A “wealth of knowledge,” as one money manager puts it, propels Hisahiro Yamaoka to a third-place debut. In December the Nomura Securities Co. analyst highlighted his buy recommendation on TS Tech Co. — first upgraded from neutral all the way back in April 2009 — on faster-than-expected recovery at its customer Honda Motor Co.’s manufacturing plants in Thailand, which had been heavily damaged in floods spawned by the monsoon rains of Tropical Storm Nock-ten. Shares of the Saitama-based seat maker catapulted 42.3 percent, from ¥1,091 to ¥1,552, through February — better even than the sector’s 18.7 percent advance over the period. Yamaoka remains bullish about the sector as the fallout from the past year’s natural disasters fades. — Ben Mattlin

RUNNER(S)-UP
- Yuichiro Isayama Goldman Sachs Japan Co.
- Shinji Kakiuchi Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities Co.
- Takashi Moriwaki Deutsche Securities
- Shiro Sakamaki Daiwa Securities Group