Goldman: Japanese Earthquake's Impact On Honda, Kyocera And Others

A magnitude 7 earthquake struck Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan last week, and Wall Street analysts are still trying to determine if the disaster will disrupt business among the local companies. Honda Motor Co Ltd (ADR) (NYSE: HMC), Bridgestone Corp (ADR) (OTC: BRDCY) (OTC: BRDCF), Kyocera Corp (ADR) (NYSE: KYO) and TDK Corp (ADR) (OTC: TTDKY) (OTC: TTDKF) all have exposure to the region.

“We see a need to confirm whether the quake has generated production bottlenecks, particularly at a key Honda-affiliated supplier (FCC) and in technology-related components,” Goldman Sachs analyst Kota Yuzawa said immediately following news of the earthquake.

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Later that night, analyst Daiki Takayama confirmed that the news was all good for a pair of local companies. Takayama called both Kyocera and TDK and “confirmed no impact on the production facilities of these two companies as of this report.”

Honda’s U.S.-listed ADR fell by 1.2 percent in Friday’s session, while Kyocera’s ADR traded down only 0.3 percent. Despite record U.S. auto sales, Honda’s stock is now down 13.7 percent in 2016.

Goldman remains optimistic, however, and maintains a Buy rating on Honda. The firm has a Neutral rating on Kyocera.

The iShares MSCI Japan ETF (NYSE: EWJ) was down 0.93 percent in Friday’s session and is now down 3.0 percent in 2016.

Disclosure: The author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.