7 Japan Stocks to Sell Now

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In the wake of the Japan earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis, the Nikkei Japanese stock exchange has been reeling. The iShares MSCI Japan Index  ETF (NYSE: EWJ) investment fund has lost nearly 20% in just five days.

Japan’s economy and the Japanese stocks were already struggling in 2011, and the disaster has sparked fears that a fragile recovery will not last. Japanese stocks have been selling off brutally as a result.

Some stocks will bounce back in Japan, but there are some Japanese investments that are just too badly battered to bounce back – thanks to bigger problems than the recent quake.

Here are 7 Japan blue chips to sell now:

 

Panasonic Corp: The first Japan stock you should consider selling is Panasonic Corp. (NYSE: PC), which has dropped -22% year to date – more than half of that decline coming before the recent crisis. The fact that numbers were down for PC before last week’s disaster makes Panasonic stock stand out as a sell. The fact that Panasonic posted a full-year loss of -54 cents per share in fiscal 2010 is not an encouraging sign either.

Sony Corp: Since last Friday, stocks of Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) have fallen -7%. Looking in the longer term, SNE stock is down -17% so far this year and -22% in the last 52 weeks. That’s compared to gains of +13% for the Dow Jones and S&P 500 in the last year and modest gains in 2011. In its annual income statement SNE reported a quarterly loss just like Panasonic.

Mizuho Financial Group: Like the other stocks on this list, Mizuho Financial Group (NYSE: MFG) has watched its stock price drop since Friday’s disaster. While this stock had posted strong gains before the Earthquake – nearly doubling from October to February. But in addition to the disarray of Japan’s market, it’s worth noting that MFG saw annual revenue slide 16% from 2008 to 2009 and then 16% again from 2009 to 2010. Not a good trend for a financial stock.

Mitsui & Co. Ltd: Next on the list is global trading company Mitsui & Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: MITSY). In the last week or so, the stock is off about -12%. In the long term this stock may not be in as bad of shape as others on this list, because it trades commodities all over the world. However, infrastructure damage and power outages mean a tough road in the near term.

Nidec Corp: Electric motor manufacturer Mitsui & Co. Ltd (NYSE: NJ) was already showing poor stock performance before the earthquake, and is down -22% in the last 12 months. A quarterly earnings growth of -15% in its last income statement only strengthens the argument against this stock.

Advantest Corp: Like Nidec before it, Advantest Corp. (NYSE: ATE) is down -22% on the year, with most of its drop before the natural disasters in Japan. This stock posted a profit for Q4 of 2010, but it was the first positive earnings report for the company in two fiscal years. That’s not inspiring, considering things are gloomy in Japan right now. avoided for its terrible numbers as well as the shaky state of the country’s economy.

Nomura Holdings Inc: Having dropped -6% since last week, Nomura Holdings Inc. (NYSE: NMR) is last on the list of Japan stocks to sell. Importantly, NMR has also had the worst yearly performance of any stock on this list, down -34% in the last 12 months and -21% since January 1. The financial services company is likely in for more pain as Japanese stocks reel in the wake of the quake.

As of this writing, Louis Navellier did not own a position in any of the stocks named here.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2011/03/japanese-stocks-japan-etf/.

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