イクヨ announced a tender offer for ムラキ at ¥3,000 per share, representing a substantial premium to the previous day's closing price. We have carefully selected 20 small-cap companies that meet the criteria of PBR below 1x, no debt and market capitalisation of ¥10 billion or less.
On 26 October, イクヨ announced a tender offer for shares of ムラキ, listed on the TSE Standard Market, at ¥3,000 per share. As the previous business day's closing price was ¥1,458, the premium is approximately 105.76%. This is an unsolicited acquisition made without the consent of ムラキ's board of directors, and ムラキ shares were bought up to the day's limit-up price of ¥1,758. The developments began in January this year, when イクヨ acquired shares from an investment fund and the share price surged. Since then, a shareholder proposal, certification by an independent committee and further share acquisitions have proceeded. The market capitalisation was in the ¥2 billion range, the equity ratio was approximately 67% and PBR was below 1x, creating conditions in which a majority stake could potentially be acquired with a relatively small amount of capital.
Market conditions are also proving favourable, and analysts have pointed out that a second or third ムラキ is likely to emerge. There were 136 tender offers and 30 MBOs in 2025, both record highs, while large shareholding reports involving important proposal actions also increased. In 2026, amendments to the tender offer system are expected to make a tender offer mandatory for acquisitions resulting in an ownership interest exceeding 30%. Nearly half of the companies in the TSE Standard Market still have PBR below 1x.
For this article, we reviewed TSE-listed stocks meeting all 3 criteria—PBR below 1x, no debt and market capitalisation of ¥10 billion or less—individually using their share prices in late October and their latest earnings summaries, and carefully selected 20 companies in total. Stocks that had already been scheduled for delisting or for which a tender offer had already been completed were excluded during the selection process.
Examples of individual stocks cited include エイケン工業, whose major shareholders include shareholders listed on ムラキ's major shareholder register, and 東京コスモス電機, which is expanding its overseas investments. Both companies are characterised by their current financial positions and changes in their shareholder structures, and their share prices may respond very differently depending on developments going forward.