THIRD TEAM

Soichiro Fukuda Citi

After two years in the runner-up position, Citi’s Soichiro Fukuda advances to third place, thanks in part to being “one of the best stock pickers in the Japanese gaming sector,” according to one satisfied client. Fukuda urged investors to buy Sega Sammy Holdings in January 2009, at ¥1,088, in expectation of improving profitability as the Tokyo-based company shifted its focus away from Pachislot machines, owing to tighter government regulations on gambling, and toward Pachinko games. He was right: In the nine months through December — the company’s fiscal year ends March 31 — Sega Sammy reported that net sales year-over-year increased from ¥285.3 billion to ¥310.1 billion and income shot up from ¥28.8 billion to ¥62.9 billion. By the end of February 2011, the stock had catapulted 70.7 percent since Fukuda’s recommendation, to ¥1,857, and outpaced the sector by a jaw-dropping 85.3 percentage points.

Polling and tabulation of data as well as reporting on the sector profiles were completed before the March 11 Tohoku earthquake.