Shares in Japanese train operators Keisei Electric Railway and Keikyu jumped Monday morning following reports that a fund linked to activist investor Yoshiaki Murakami has built stakes in both companies.
Keisei’s stock jumped over 18%, its sharpest intraday rise since October 2008, with Keikyu climbing more than 16%, the most since 1987. A Murakami-associated fund has taken an almost 5% stake in Keikyu and owns fewer than 1% of Keisei shares, according to a Monday report by Toyo Keizai, citing an unidentified person.
The news is a positive for both companies and delivered a boost to Japan’s rail sector stocks, said Andrew Jackson, head of Japan Equity Strategy at Ortus Advisors. Odakyu Electric Railway climbed as much as 4.9% in early trading Monday, with Central Japan Railway (JR Central) and West Japan Railway (JR West) both up around 2% at one point.
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