Asahi Kasei

3407.TMEDIUM

Battery Materials / Separator · Weight: 7%· Data as of 2026-05-17

¥1,524.5-0.68%

6-month daily

Investment Thesis

Classic trough-to-recovery: Hipore separator EBITDA remains depressed but North America supply chain building. FY2026 record OP ¥231.2B driven by Healthcare (pharma+Zoll) + Homes — separator weakness masked by diversification. Charlotte NC coating starts supply to Toyota Tsusho mid-2027 (confirmed). Port Colborne Ontario ($1.56B plant) proceeding to H1 2029 production (delayed). Valuation at trough: PE 13.4x, PB 1.07x.

Risk

Hipore recovery timeline extended — Port Colborne delayed to 2029 (Honda Canada suspended EV plans but maintained 25% stake). Chinese separator competition intensifying. Materials segment OP declined in FY2026 despite record group profit. EV demand timing uncertainty. FY2026 record OP at group level creates AP01 optic risk (though underlying separator is still at trough — not true AP01).

Monitoring Trigger

Charlotte NC coating facility commercial production (H1 FY2027 = Apr-Sep 2026 — check Q1 FY2027 commentary). Toyota Tsusho supply start mid-2027 confirmed. Port Colborne groundbreaking/construction progress. Hipore segment EBITDA recovery signal. If Materials segment OP turns positive on separator, UPGRADE. If Port Colborne is cancelled, DOWNGRADE.

Key Dates

2026-06catalystCharlotte NC coating facility starts operations (H1 FY2027 target per IR) — first North American Hipore production

2026-06-30rebalanceSemiannual portfolio rebalance

2026-11earningsQ2 FY2027 earnings — watch for Charlotte NC coating contribution and Hipore segment progress

2027-04monitoringQ4 FY2027 earnings — Charlotte NC supply to Toyota Tsusho starts mid-2027; check initial revenue booking

2029-H1catalystPort Colborne Ontario commercial production start (delayed from 2027/2028)

Update History

2026-05-17evolveHOLD

View report →

FY2026 record OP ¥231.2B (Healthcare+Homes strength). Materials/Hipore still weak. Port Colborne delayed to 2029. Charlotte NC mid-2027 confirmed. PE 13.4x at trough. HOLD.

pe:14.1213.4forward_pe:13.312.9roe:N/A7.7%op_margin:7.3%7.5%market_cap:¥2.22T¥2.13Tthesis:...trough...Port Colborne delayed 2029; Charlotte NC confirmed mid-2027; record group OP

Key Metrics

13.4

12.9

Fwd PE

1.07

P/B

7.7%

ROE

7.5%

Op Margin

55%

D/E

2.5%

Div Yield

+¥134B

FCF

¥2.13T

Mkt Cap

Business Segments

Segment	Revenue	Share	Description
Materials	¥1,520B	50%	Hipore separator, resins, fibers
Homes	¥760B	25%	Hebel Haus residential
Healthcare	¥760B	25%	Zoll medical, pharma

Supply Chain Evidence

Evidence	Customer	Product	Detail
confirmed	Toyota Tsusho / Toyota battery chain	Coated Hipore separator — Charlotte NC	Capacity rights agreement July 2025. Supply from mid-2027 from Charlotte NC coating facility. Preferential share of production.[source](2025-07)
confirmed	Honda Motor	Hipore separator — Port Colborne plant (25% equity stake)	Honda committed ~CAD$240M for 25% stake in Port Colborne $1.56B plant. Honda Canada suspended EV plans but maintained stake. Construction proceeding for H1 2029 production.[source](2026-01)
probable	Korean battery makers (LG, Samsung SDI)	Hipore wet-process separator	Historical supply. No new 2026 contract announced. North America pivot ongoing.

Primary IR Documentation

Values and insights cited from official company IR releases (earnings, 決算短信, MoUs, presentations).

IR landingAsahi Kasei IR (English)↗

Cites: Primary IR portal

https://www.asahi-kasei.com/ir/

Earnings releaseFY2025 Full Year Financial Briefing (Mar 2026)↗

Cites: Full year financial summary for FYE March 2026

https://www.asahi-kasei.com/ir/library/financial_briefing/pdf/mar2026.pdf

Press releaseAsahi Kasei to supply Hipore LIB separator to Toyota Tsusho (Jul 31, 2025)↗

Cites: Hipore separator strategic supply agreement with Toyota Tsusho America for North America (mid-2027 start)

https://www.asahi-kasei.com/news/2025/e250731.html

Sources & References

↗StockAnalysishttps://stockanalysis.com/quote/tyo/3407/statistics/↗Yahoo Finance JPhttps://finance.yahoo.co.jp/quote/3407.T

Peer Comparison

Company	PE	Fwd PE	ROE	Op Margin	FCF
Murata Manufacturing	~49.7x TTM (impairment-distorted; fwd PE ~37x on FY2026 guidance)	~37x (on FY2026 OP +34.8% guidance)	7.25%	15.4%	+¥239B
TDK Corp	26.51	23.71	11.4%	12.4%	+¥169B
Fuji Electric	20.59	17.97	8.2%	8.7%	+¥51B
Sumitomo Metal Mining	28.63	19.76	5.0%	5.0%	+¥87B
AGC Inc	17.89	14.7	4.7%	6.2%	+¥65B
Kureha Corp	N/A	19	-6.7%	-11.1%	~est. negative (capex ongoing)
Asahi Kasei	13.4	12.9	7.7%	7.5%	+¥134B
Mitsubishi Electric	32.85	30.6	10.1%	9.1%	+¥317B
Nidec Corp			6.3%	5.0%	+¥174B
Hirose Electric	23.3	23.5	9.0%	20.3%	~+¥36B
Sumitomo Electric	25.5	29.7	10.2%	8.2%	+¥102B (est.)
Resonac Holdings	83.53	~31.6x	5.72%	4.3%	+¥24B
Rohm Co.	Loss (NI -¥158.4B SiC impairment)	~125x (near-breakeven NI; FY2028 target >20% OP margin)	Loss	+1.6% Q3 FY2026 (recovering from -9.0% year ago)	-¥44B
Shindengen Electric Manufacturing Co., Ltd.	30.8	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
GS Yuasa Corporation	11.04	N/A	9.59%	N/A	N/A
Mitsuba Corporation	5.5	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Daido Steel Co., Ltd.	~11x	N/A	N/A	N/A	+est.
Nippon Seiki Co., Ltd.	12.45	12.05	N/A	N/A	+confirmed
Musashi Seimitsu Industry Co., Ltd.	31.6	N/A	N/A	11.1%	N/A
Stanley Electric Co., Ltd.	13.8		4.5%	6.3%	N/A
Honda Motor Co., Ltd.	7.77		5.82%	7.0%	N/A
Mitsui High-tec, Inc.	15.3	13	11.8%	5.8%	-¥12B
MinebeaMitsumi Inc.	18.7	13.75	9.1%	6.2%	-¥21B
Ryobi Limited	~8x	N/A	4.4%	3.2%	N/A
Tokai Rika Co., Ltd.	~8x	N/A	10.9%	5.9%	+est. ¥15-20B
Nippon Chemi-Con Corporation	91	7	3.1%	2.9%	~0 (thin; ¥20B capex planned)
Japan Aviation Electronics Industry, Ltd.	13.7		5.1%	7.1%	thin (¥63B capex over 3yr)
ARCHION Corporation	11	11	~6%	~2.0%	Negative on integration capex through FY2027
Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.	18.3	N/A	N/A	2.4%	N/A
Nichicon Corporation	16.74	N/A	N/A	3.8%	N/A
Mikuni Corporation	4.2	N/A	N/A — confirm vs J-Quants	N/A — thin, est. 1-3%	N/A
T.RAD Co., Ltd.	N/A — confirm vs StockAnalysis	N/A	N/A — confirm vs J-Quants	N/A	N/A
Renesas Electronics Corporation	N/A (EPS negative — IDT amortization ¥370B/yr; operating profit positive)	N/A	~10.5% (pre-impairment FY2025; currently impaired by amortization)	N/A — confirm vs J-Quants	N/A
Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.	24.79x TTM	22.32x (pre-PVC recovery)	~10.5-11.5%	~24.7% (FY2026; compressed -14.4% from PVC weakness)	+¥739.4B (FY2025 — outstanding)
Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd.	~17.2x TTM	~12.0x (FY2025 guidance ¥25.5B NI)	6.54%	10.3% (FY2025 guidance)	+¥46B est (EV/FCF 8.73x, EV ~¥400B)
NSK Ltd	32.12	22.70	1.8%	2.96%	+¥44B (est.)
Toray Industries Inc	25.97	16.62	3.19%	5.0%	N/A
SMC Corporation	29.0	27.24	7.9%	N/A	+¥200B (est., high net income + minimal capex)
Mitsui Kinzoku Company, Limited	~29.7x TTM / ~22.3x forward (StockAnalysis/Simply Wall St, May 2026)	~22.3x	~18.4%	~15.6% (implied: OP ¥117B / revenue ¥750B FY2025E)	N/A (verify J-Quants; positive expected given OP margins)
UBE Corporation	~8.4x TTM (cheaply valued)	N/A	~5.1% (WARNING: below TSE 8% target — ROE guardrail triggered. Override: capex-heavy transition period; electrolyte growth pipeline.)	~4.7% (thin — monitor for recovery to 7%+)	N/A (capex-heavy with Louisiana plant — verify against J-Quants when available)
Taiyo Yuden Co., Ltd.	20.79x TTM (StockAnalysis, May 2026)	27.52x (FY2026 guidance: +8% revenue, +50% OP income)	3.92%	~3.3% TTM (trough); guided to ~4.8–5% FY2026 on +50% OP recovery	N/A
F.C.C. Co., Ltd.	9.5x	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Nittoku Co., Ltd.	14.12x	15.45x	N/A	N/A	N/A
NOK Corporation	15.5x	N/A	~3-5%	4.9%	N/A
Yokowo Co., Ltd.	N/A	N/A	N/A	5.1%	N/A
Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd.	7.5	N/A	1.4%	5.0%	+¥52.5B
Hioki E.E. Corporation	27.8x	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Tsubakimoto Chain Co.	~11.2x	N/A	8.75%	~8.1%	est. +¥20-25B
Central Glass Co., Ltd.	17.7x	~14x (26% EPS growth forecast; analyst consensus)	~8.2% (est: NI ¥8.36B / book value ¥101B)	~3.2% (compressed; was ~6-9% pre-Chinese LiPF6 price war)	N/A (J-Quants not available; cross-validate before entry)
CKD Corporation	~36x	~20x (analyst forecast; likely conservative given 35.7% recent earnings growth)	9.19%	12.4%	N/A
Panasonic Holdings Corporation	32.4x	~15x (FY2027 NI expected +2.2x from ¥75B base)	4.77% (FY2026 trough; guided higher FY2027)	~2.9% (FY2026: OP ¥236.4B / Revenue ¥8,049B; compressed by restructuring charges)	N/A (Panasonic Energy capex-heavy; cross-validate before entry)
UACJ Corporation	15.46x	~22x (FY2027 NI guided ¥28B from ¥38.8B; NI decline; caution)	11.21%	~5.4% (Q3 FY2026 9M operating profit margin improving from prior year)	N/A (capital-intensive aluminum rolling; verify before entry)
Kanto Denka Kogyo Co., Ltd.	N/A (loss year FY2026 due to fire). Forward PE ~32x on FY2027 guided EPS ¥118.3	~32x (FY2027 guided NI ¥6.8B / shares 57.46M = ¥118.3 EPS; price ¥3,775)	-4.74% (FY2026 fire loss). FY2027 guided ROE ~10% (¥6.8B NI / ¥68B book)	~8.7% guided FY2027 (¥10B OP / ¥95B revenue). Depressed in FY2026 (fire losses)	Negative FY2026 (fire year). Recovery expected FY2027.