5 Best Japanese Stocks To Buy In 2024

2. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:MUFG)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 18

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:MUFG) is a bank holding company that operates through Digital Service, Retail & Commercial Banking, Japanese Corporate & Investment Banking, Asset Management & Investor Services, Global Corporate & Investment Banking, Global Commercial Banking, and Global Markets segments. It is one of the best Japanese stocks to buy. 

On November 14, 2023, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:MUFG) announced a stock buyback plan to repurchase up to 400 million shares, equivalent to ¥400 billion. The decision is part of the bank’s strategy to return profits to shareholders and enhance capital efficiency. MUFG’s six-month profit also surged over fourfold, prompting the move to flexibly repurchase its stock.

According to Insider Monkey’s fourth quarter database, 18 hedge funds were bullish on Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:MUFG), compared to 12 funds in the prior quarter. Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management is the leading stakeholder of the company, with 6.7 million shares worth $58 million. 

ClearBridge International Value Strategy made the following comment about Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:MUFG) in its Q4 2022 investor letter:

“We also initiated a position in Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:MUFG), a Japanese financial company that provides retail and commercial banking, investment banking, capital markets, and asset management services globally. We believe the Bank of Japan’s Yield Curve Control policies have proved a major headwind to Japanese banking earnings since first introduced in 2016. However, as Japan finds itself facing the same rising inflationary pressures that have forced most other global central banks to embark on a path of interest rate normalization, we believe the Bank of Japan is likely to follow suit. This should help remove the headwinds that have weighed on Mitsubishi UFJ’s net interest income for the last six years and help to spur greater increases in income, margins, and profitability.”