ASKUL公司5月月度报告：略微积极，大米销售回升

Hiroko Sato * | Equity Analyst813 5251 6185 | hsato@jefferies.comKen Oiwa, CFA * | Equity Analyst+813 5251 6126 | koiwa@jefferies.comSource: Company data, Jefferies Company DescriptionASKUL CorpThe history of Askul Corporation goes back to 1963, when it was first established as a 100% subsidiary of Plus Corporation. Askul targets small andmedium-size enterprises, offers office supplies from catalogs and via the Internet. The name “Askul” comes from “Ashita kuru“, which translatesas “items ordered will be delivered next day”. Next-day delivery is made possible by the company locating large-capacity distribution centers nearmetropolitan areas around Japan. Currently, the company has 7 distribution centers throughout Japan.Company Valuation/RisksASKUL CorpOur PT of ¥1,680 equates to a PER of 15x applied to our FY5/26 EPS estimate of ¥112, at a discount to the average sector valuation. Askul willbe adding new Kanto DC center which will be operational by FY5/26 and has allocated ¥100bn capital for the next 3 years. Askul continues tostrengthen synergies with LY Corporation. With the LINE merger, it expects more traffic from LYC in the future. Risks: Shipping costs, macroslowdown and relationship with LYC. We are closely monitoring the impact of the paperless trend on future sales of copy paper. We are alsoseeing a delay in the development of its new website. This could impact its mid-term plan. We will be carefully watching the progress of the site.LY CorporationOur price target of ¥562 is based on FY3/26E adj. EV/EBITDA of 12.6x, positioning the stock near the sector-average EV/EBITDA.Risks:Macro slowdown, competition in areas such as mobile payment, and a slowdown in Internet Ad and online e-commerce shift. LYC needs tomake substantial investments in building new AI solutions. We look forward to LYC investing toward future service development rather thanunderspending now, and await the company's next new mid-term strategy announcement.Analyst Certification:I, Hiroko Sato, certify that all of the views expressed in this research report accurately reflect my personal views about the subject security(ies) and subjectcompany(ies). I also certify that no part of my compensation was, is, or will be, directly or indirectly, related to the specific recommendations or viewsexpressed in this research report.I, Ken Oiwa, CFA, certify that all of the views expressed in this research report accurately reflect my personal views about the subject security(ies) andsubject company(ies). I also certify that no part of my compensation was, is, or will be, directly or indirectly, related to the specific recommendations orviews expressed in this research report.Registration of non-US analysts:Hiroko Sato is employed by Jefferies (Japan) Limited, a non-US affiliate of Jefferies LLC and is not registered/qualified asa research analyst with FINRA. This analyst(s) may not be an associated person of Jefferies LLC, a FINRA member firm, and therefore may not be subjectto the FINRA Rule 2241 and restrictions on communications with a subject company, public appearances and trading securities held by a research analyst.Registration of non-US analysts:Ken Oiwa, CFA is employed by Jefferies (Japan) Limited, a non-US affiliate of Jefferies LLC and is not registered/qualifiedas a research analyst with FINRA. This analyst(s) may not be an associated person of Jefferies LLC, a FINRA member firm, and therefore may not be subjectto the FINRA Rule 2241 and restrictions on communications with a subject company, public appearances and trading securities held by a research analyst.As is the case with all Jefferies employees, the analyst(s) responsible for the coverage of the financial instruments discussed in this report receivescompensation based in part on the overall performance of the firm, including investment banking income. We seek to update our research as appropriate,but various regulations may prevent us from doing so. Aside from certain industry reports published on a periodic basis, the large majority of reports arepublished at irregular intervals as appropriate in the analyst's judgement.Investment Recommendation Record(Article 3(1)e and Article 7 of MAR)Recommendation PublishedRecommendation DistributedExplanation of Jefferies RatingsBuy - Describes securities that we expect to provide a total return (price appreciation plus yield) of 15% or more within a 12-month period.Hold - Describes securities that we expect to provide a total return (price appreciation plus yield) of plus 15% or minus 10% within a 12-month period.Underperform - Describes securities that we expect to provide a total return (price appreciation plus yield) of minus 10% or less within a 12-month period.The expected total return (price appreciation plus yield) for Buy rated securities with an average security price consistently below $10 is 20% or more withina 12-month period as these companies are typically more volatile than the overall stock market. For Hold rated se