Toei Animation Co., Ltd.

Japan Exchange Group, the operator of Japan's stock exchanges, has unveiled a plan for a major restructuring of the Topix index, reducing its constituent stocks by about 40% from roughly 1,600 companies to fewer than 1,000, in a bid to make Tokyo's benchmark gauge more attractive to investment money. Under the plan, 683 companies selected from the current list of constituents will be phased out on a quarterly basis starting October 30. At the same time, the market will add 35 new companies to the index on the same day, including McDonald's Holdings Co. (Japan) and Toei Animation Co. Japan Exchange Group added that stocks that fail to meet the new assessment criteria in October 2027 will be removed from the Topix index entirely by the end of July 2028. The selection of stocks will be assessed on several key factors, such as market capitalization and trading volume. Kyodo News reported that the Topix index originally comprised all stocks listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, but after a major market restructuring in 2022, those stocks were reclassified, with most moving to the newly established main board, or Prime Market. The Tokyo Stock Exchange will begin reviewing and revising the list of stocks in the Topix index on a regular annual basis starting in October 2028.

Toei Animation rebounded. It was announced that the latest film in the popular ONE PIECE franchise, ONE PIECE FILM GOD VALLEY, will be released in summer 2027, and that a further installment, ONE PIECE FILM BAAD, is scheduled for release in 2029. Expectations are rising that, like the previous ONE PIECE FILM RED, these will contribute significantly to the company's earnings.