Nike, Coca-Cola…40 U.S. Stocks You Can Buy from the 10,000 Yen Range

In February this year, the Nikkei Stock Average recovered to the 30,000-yen level for the first time in 30 years. Since then, however, the stock price has been stuck in a slump for a long time due to the reemergence of the new coronavirus infection caused by the Delta and Omicron stocks and the global surge in raw material prices.

In this environment, U.S. stocks should be considered as a new investment option. Mr. Taiki Yorifuji, a money consultant and the president of Money & You, explains the strength of U.S. stocks as follows.

The size of the U.S. stock market is off the charts. The New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ Stock Exchange alone account for 40% of the world’s market capitalization. Also, the quarterly dividends are huge. Some companies, such as Procter & Gamble and Johnson & Johnson, have been increasing their dividends for more than 50 years in a row.

Aside from these real benefits, there is also a sense of excitement that U.S. companies may bring about innovations that will change the world. There are companies that are also growing in Japan, but their explosive power is different compared to the U.S. companies. One of the appeals of U.S. stocks is that by buying individual stocks, you feel that you are investing in such companies.

In most cases, the minimum purchase unit for Japanese stocks is set at 100 shares. For example, if you want to buy UNIQLO (Fast Retailing) stock at 68,000 yen, you will need at least 6.8 million yen in initial capital. This is an unrealistic amount of money to invest for the first time.

U.S. stocks, on the other hand, can be bought from a single share. Even for world-famous companies like Apple and Microsoft, you can start investing from a few thousand to tens of thousands of yen.

Japanese stocks and U.S. stocks go up in the same way when they are rising, but when they are falling, Japanese stocks tend to fall. In fact, it might be fair to say that the more stable U.S. stocks are more solid to buy.

However, U.S. stocks seem to be somewhat difficult to trade. But what is it really like?

You can buy U.S. stocks through the websites and apps of Japanese securities companies such as Monex, SBI, and Rakuten, just as you can with Japanese stocks. Although there are transaction fees and foreign exchange fees, there are no complicated procedures to purchase stocks, and considering the minimum number of units to purchase, it is easier to invest than Japanese stocks.

Let’s take a look at some of the recommended stocks that are easy to invest in, even if you don’t have a lot of experience.

Coca-Cola is famous for being a long-term investment of Warren Buffett, the god of investment. Coca-Cola is famous for being a long-term investment of the investment god Warren Buffett. Africa, with its growing population, has a lot of room for market development, and further growth can be expected,” says Rintaro Suzuki, an investor and writer on US stocks.

Coca-Cola’s stock price is $56.28. The stock price of Coca-Cola is $56.28, which can be converted into Japanese yen at a price of 6383 yen per share. Similarly, Nike, a sporting goods manufacturer, can be purchased at $169.06 per share, or 19,174 Japanese yen.

Mr. Tapazo, a private investor, recommends Visa, a credit card brand.

He said, “Although there is uncertainty about the future of the economy and competition from fintech, now might be a good time to consider it as the stock price seems reasonable.

While some well-established companies, such as Coca-Cola and Visa, continue to expand steadily, another characteristic of U.S. stocks is that some companies are growing at a furious pace.

I would recommend Netflix, whose “Squid Games” was a global hit this year. The company is very good at capturing trends from around the world, and the production costs it invests in each film are off the charts. The company’s policy of aggressively investing in content is paying off, and its stock price is expected to rise steadily.

Tsutomu Nishizaki, a financial planner and representative of Leafs, Inc., cites the name of Tesla, which has become the gulliver of electric and self-driving cars.

The company’s stock price may fluctuate wildly in a bubble-like fashion, but it has begun to establish a certain status as an automaker, overtaking Mercedes-Benz as the third best-selling luxury car brand in the United States. If its solar cell and energy storage business, which it is currently focusing on, gets off the ground, it may be able to improve its performance further.

Virtual space” is the keyword

I would also like to pay attention to companies whose performance has declined due to Covid-19. Mr. Suzuki recommends the following “value stocks.

Mr. Suzuki recommends Delta Air Lines, one of the leading airlines in the United States. The price of Delta Air Lines, the leading U.S. airline, has fallen again due to the expansion of the Omicron stock, but the stock price should return to the upside as demand for travel and business trips revives. It’s a good name to stock up on now.

A major global trend this year has been the rising demand for semiconductors. Semiconductors are used in all kinds of industrial products, including high-specification personal computers, which sold like hotcakes due to nest egg demand, and Tesla’s self-driving cars, which I mentioned earlier, and even in Japan, major manufacturers such as Toyota were forced to reduce production.

In Japan, major manufacturers such as Toyota were forced to reduce production. Currently, more than 25,000 companies, including Nintendo, use its products, and this demand is expected to continue next year.

A key word close to the demand for semiconductors is the rise of the “virtual space” known as the “metaverse.

Facebook has changed its name to Meta and is steering the development of a virtual space built on its network. The plan is to create a metaverse in a world that is connected to Facebook, which has 2 billion monthly users. Whether Meta will be a success remains to be seen, but there is no doubt that the Metaverse will become a trend in the future.

In the midst of an unprecedented race to develop a virtual space, Walt Disney has been mentioned as a company with growth potential. In the Covid-19 disaster, the company is expected to see demand for its video distribution services as a nest egg, and once the disaster is over, it will see rebound demand for its theme parks.

Disney’s acquisition of Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Entertainment, and 21st Century Fox has become a hot topic. In the coming metaverse market, the power of having globally known characters is tremendous.

In addition to the licensing business, it is not hard to imagine a future in which we can develop our own Disney resort in a virtual space that can be accessed from all over the world.

For the same reason, Adobe, which develops and sells software for creators such as Photoshop, is another stock to target.

In a digital space like the Metaverse, the demand for creators to create content will increase. In a digital space like the Metaverse, the demand for content creators will increase, and what they will use are Adobe products such as Creative Cloud. In the medium to long term, we will continue to see high growth,” said Unozawa.

It is difficult even for advanced investors to buy stocks while reading what will happen to the world. I asked Mr. Nishizaki to name the best “classic U.S. stocks” to buy at first.

I know it’s a bit of a stretch, but I recommend starting with Apple and Microsoft. Apple has started to develop its own GPU, which is necessary for the iPhone, to further secure its uniqueness. I think there is still a lot of room for business expansion.

Microsoft’s fixed monthly fee for its products is stable and profitable. These two companies are relatively unaffected by Covid-19, and I think it’s good to keep them in mind when looking at the overall market.

Lastly, I would like to introduce a Japanese company listed on the U.S. stock market that is a good buy.

KuraZushi USA is one to watch. The demand for Japanese food is growing in the U.S., and conveyor-belt sushi is a popular content. Since its listing in 2007, the company has been steadily increasing the number of its restaurants. As overseas travel is expected to be restricted for a while yet, expectations will rise for a recovery in demand for food service consumption.

Even if you don’t have any experience in stock investment, you can now easily take on the challenge of U.S. stocks. Even if you don’t have any stock investment experience, you can now try your hand at U.S. stocks, which are now full of investment opportunities, including global brands whose prices have fallen due to Covid-19 and venture companies that are leading the way in next-generation technology.

From the December 31, 2021 issue of FRIDAY