2014/11/13

The Japan Investor Relations Association Announces Its
Nineteenth Annual IR Grand Prix

The Japan Investor relations Association (JIRA, Chairman: Shuzo Sumi, Tokio Marine
Holdings, Inc., Chairman of the Board), the only privately-run non-profit organization working forthe proliferation and improvement of investor relations (IR) activities in Japan, has announced therecipients of the 2014 Annual IR Grand Prix Awards.

The IR Grand Prix (Committee Chairman:Tetsuo Kitagawa, Aoyama Gakuin University

graduate School, Professor of International Management) is designed to recognize thosecompanies which have achieved successful results and gained the support of the investmentcommunity for their strong understanding of and proactive efforts to promote investor
relations. This year marks the 19th year that the IR Grand Prix has been held, andcharacteristics of the awards and their recipients are listed below.
○ Management maintains high level dialogues with investors and take them into consideration in

the creation and implementation of business strategies.
○“IR Day” held by various business divisions and other events are actively conducted as part ofcompanies’ overall IR activities with the goal of gaining a deeper understanding of investors.

○ Companies present a roadmap for the achievement of sustainable growth in the creation of theirmedium term business plans, while at the same time clearly indicating their policies withregards to improving capital efficiency and positioning on shareholder returns. Furthermore,progress in achieving their various goals is reported on whenever appropriate.

Committee Chairman Tetsuo Kitagawa states that “the companies chosen for the IR GrandPrix place a high priority upon dialogue with the capital markets.

They also seek to fulfill

their responsibility to explain changes in their business environment when they appear, andthey focus upon not only financial information but other various factors influencing theirbusiness including the environment, society and governance (ESG).
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At the same time,chosen companies strongly seek to create corporate value and explain their efforts logically.”
Of the members of JIRA, 261 publicly traded companies applied for screening in the 2014
IR Grand Prix. Of these companies, a total of 14 companies were selected to receive awards,including two for the IR Grand Prix Award, five for the Best IR Award, five for the IR SpecialAward, and two for the IR Award for Small to Medium Capitalization Companies. Reasonsfor the selection of the award recipient companies and other details are provided below.

“IR Prime Business Award” (Alphabetical Order)
Recipient, IR Grand Prix Award
Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd.
United Arrows Ltd.
Recipients, Best IR Award
Ajinomoto Co., Inc.
Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd.
Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc.
Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
Recipients, IR Special Award
Shionogi & Co., Ltd.
Seiko Epson Corp.
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
NH Foods, Ltd.
MITSUI & CO., LTD.
Recipients, Best IR Award for Small to Medium Sized Capitalization Companies
Digital Advertising Consortium Inc.
Fukuoka Realty Co., Ltd.

Details of the awards are provided below:

Best IR Award
The recipient of this annual award is chosen from publicly traded companies that are membersof the Japan Investor Relations Association (JIRA).
IR Grand Prix Award
This award is given to companies that have been awarded the Best IR Award two times in thepast, and are worthy of being chosen for a third time due to the high regard for their IR
activities. This award was first started in 2005. Award recipient companies chosen for this2/9award are excluded from consideration of this same award for a period of two years after they
have been selected.

IR Special Award
Amongst the companies applying for this award, companies that take on a leadership role within
their industry by promoting ongoing efforts and activities to raise their level of IR and promote
IR to individual investors are regarded highly. This award was also started in 2005.
IR Award for Small to Medium Capitalization Companies
Publicly traded companies that are listed on emerging markets, the Second Section Market of theTokyo Stock Exchange, and medium to small sized capitalization companies of the First Section
Market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange that have been listed for less than 10 years are considered
for this award. This award was started in 2002.
IR Special Award for Small to Medium Capitalization Companies
Candidates for this award are evaluated for the same criteria as those of the IR Award for Small
to Medium Capitalization Companies, with this award going to those companies that promote
unique IR activities and are expected to promote efforts to improve their IR activities goingforward. This award was started in 2011.

Three step screening process described below:① Preliminary screening based upon “surveys” filled out and submitted by companies applying forawards, of which 214 companies were selected to be considered for secondary screening.
② The 13 committee members are comprised of securities analysts, institutional investors,journalists, and other members with investment expertise. These members closely examined the190 companies considered for the IR Grand Prix, Best IR and IR Special Awards, and 24
companies considered for the IR Award for Small to Medium Sized Capitalization Companies thatpassed the preliminary screening process.
③ Candidate companies that have passed the secondary screening undergo final screening byacademics, attorneys, and other individuals with expertise in the field of investments in addition tothe above mentioned committee members.

The awards ceremony is expected to be conducted at the “IR Conference 2014” to be held on
December 11 from 1140 AM at the Garden City Shinagawa.

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Contact:
Japan Investor Relations Association
Yoshiko Sato, Chief Research Fellow
Tetsuro Shinohara, Chief Research Fellow
Toshihiro Kitazono, Chief Research Fellow
Yuko Matsumura, Secretariat
Miho Sakurai, Secretariat
Telephone: +81-3-5259-2676, Fax: +81-3-5259-2677

About JIRAThe Japan Investor Relations Association (JIRA) is a non-profit organization founded in 1993.
JIRA is comprised of 561 members (as of October, 2014) and conducts educational activities,surveys, research, and provides opportunities for member companies to exchange information.

https://www.jira.or.jp

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<Supplemental Information>
Main Reasons for Selection of Award Recipients and Other Information

Recipients, IR Grand Prix Award
Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd.
(Best IR Award recipient in 2004 (Asahi Breweries, Ltd.) and 2010, IR Special Award recipient in2013, first time recipient of the IR Grand Prix Award)
Top management of the Asahi Group implemented capital strategies and business reforms with thegoal of “raising corporate value” based upon dialogues with investors.

The Company also

received high regards for its efforts to clearly explain its roadmap and efforts to achieving
sustainable growth in various presentations and meetings. The President directly oversees Asahi’s
IR division, and he works closely and frequently communicates with other managers to accurately
assess business conditions. The fact that corporate responsibility to explain various topics such as
earnings revisions, M&A activities, share buybacks and others are fully fulfilled was anotherstrength of the Company. And Asahi’s overall investor relations activities were highly regarded.

United Arrows Ltd.
(IR Award for Small to Medium Capitalization Companies recipient in 2002, Best IR Award
recipient in 2003 and 2005, IR Special Award recipient in 2013, first time recipient of the IR GrandPrix Award)
United Arrows maintained a high level of IR activities, with special note of its efforts to constantlyimplement improvements to its activities. The Company’s effort in terms of both the quality andvolume of disclosure was superior to other companies, and their awareness of “fair disclosure” wasvery high.

United Arrows also was highly regarded for its clear explanation of its policy

concerning cost of capital and its activities to raise capital efficiency.

Management places a highpriority upon feedback with the opinion of investors being shared internally and considered in theirbusiness strategies.

Furthermore, top management takes a proactive attitude in maintaining

dialogue with investors and seeks to include their discussions in their management. The IR
division is also viewed as being highly credible for its efforts to respond quickly and in detail tocontact from investors, and the investment community looks forward to a continuation of thishighly superior level of IR activities.

Recipients, Best IR Award
Ajinomoto Co., Inc.
(Best IR Award recipient in 2012)
The top management of Ajinomoto clearly places a high priority upon IR activities, and they seek
to reflect their dialogues with investors in their management strategies.

In addition, the clear cut

efforts of the Company to achieving its return on equity (ROE) targets was also evaluated highly, as
well as its efforts to improve its information disclosure, clearly explain M&A activities in5/9presentations soon after they have been executed, and accurate disclosure of earnings trends of its
various businesses. Furthermore, Ajinomoto has been highly regarded for its implementation ofactivities to fortify its support structure for its IR activities.

The IR division itself has also

implemented a program of responding to investors questions in detail and carefully explaining eachof its wide range of business divisions in easy to understand terms.

Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd.
(Best IR Award recipient in 1997 as Ito-Yokado Co., Ltd. before it transitioned to the new holdingcompany structure)

Seven & i Holdings was highly regarded for its efforts to explain the risks arising fromchanges in its business environment and its ongoing information disclosure activities.

Inaddition, the market has praised the Company’s fortification of its IR activities in recent years,
and its efforts to fortify its information disclosure including monthly and quarterly information,
its annual data book, English documents, and other IR tools.

The IR division has also

implemented various activities across a wide range of its business divisions including detailedpresentations and tours of company facilities.

Another feature is the clear representation ofreturn on equity targets in the Company’s midterm business plan.
Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc.
(IR Special Award recipient in 2008, Best IR Award recipient in 2010)
Tokio Marine Holdings was evaluated highly for its proactive efforts to communicate with both
domestic and international investors to explain its vision and long term business strategies.
Presentations given to Japanese investors by the CFO to explain progress in the attainment of its
midterm business plan are also regarded highly. Tokio Marine has also taken the literature of its
foreign competitors into consideration in the creation of its own documents and in establishing aclearly defined message as a global corporation. Efforts have also been made to clearly explain
the goals of improvements in earnings generation and capital efficiency in easy to understandterminology.

Furthermore, Tokio Marine’s activities in responding to questions and explaining

various events that have occurred to investors have also been rated favorably.

Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.
(IR Special Award recipient in 2013, first time recipient of the Best IR Award)
The top management’s communications with investors was regarded highly. They have also beenviewed favorably for their participation in presentations and facility tours and their open exchangeof opinions with investors attending these events as part of their efforts to improve their IRactivities. The Company has also been favorably viewed for its clear message, and explanationsof various activities in the past and how they have influenced earnings thereafter. The IR division
has taken the opinions of investors into consideration and gathered information from each of theirbusiness divisions to be used in easy to understand presentations and explanations. In addition,
Mitsui Chemical’s work to fortify its documents used in business presentations, facility tours,
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earnings announcement meetings and management presentations have also come to be rated highly.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
(First time recipient of the Best IR Award)
Mitsubishi Heavy’s top management’s direct approach to the capital markets is very apparent andclearly reflected in its easy to understand business strategy.

Furthermore, the Company clearly

explains progress in the achievement of its medium term business plan in its presentation
documents.

The Company’s efforts to consolidate and restructure business divisions and toprovide facility tours have also received high regard, in addition to its IR activities that clearly state
where the business strategy is designed to take the company.

Improvements in capital efficiency

and fortification of corporate governance are part of the company’s business strategy and have also
received high regard from investors.

Mitsubishi Heavy has also proactively conducted IR

activities for individual investors.

Recipients, IR Special AwardShionogi & Co., Ltd.
(First time recipient of IR Special Award)
A return on equity target has been included in the new midterm business plan announced on March
2014, and Shionogi & Co.’s explanations of its capital efficiency and shareholder return policies
were highly evaluated. In recent years, the Company has conducted increasingly more proactive
investor relation activities including providing explanation of risks associated with major
pharmaceutical products that will go off patent during research and development and otherpresentations.

Moreover, the IR division provides feedback and information received frominvestors to management of the Company with the goal of improving the operations of its variousbusinesses.

Seiko Epson Corp.
(First time recipient of IR Special Award)
Seiko Epson’s continued and consistent disclosure of various information regardless of fluctuationsin its earnings was rated highly. The Company promoted understanding of its businesses by
providing timely explanations in presentations despite volatility in earnings. Furthermore, they
conducted presentations not only at the headquarters in Suwa City, Nagano Prefecture, but also inTokyo for investors who do not have time to travel to the presentations held at the headquarters.
In addition to intrepid efforts to realize the Company’s visions, management has also proactively
pursued dialogues with investors. Another characteristic of the Company that is highly regarded
is the IR division’s deep understanding of the various business divisions and the reasons forfluctuations in their earnings, and their ability to thoroughly explain these features to theinvestment community.

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
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(First time recipient of IR Special Award)
The favorable reputation of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone’s investor relations activities hasgrown rapidly in recent years, due in part to the establishment of easy to understand management
goals and a clear policy regarding investor returns by the management.

In reflection of the voicesof investors, the Company introduced an “IR-Day” where persons from various divisions givepresentations of their businesses from this year. Presentations for individual investors are also
held frequently with opportunities for attending investors to talk with management.

The IRdivision also endeavors to respond accurately to the requests of analysts and investors. TheCompany has also taken on the challenge of creating an integrated report and accepting ESG(Environment, society and governance) investor visits.

NH Foods, Ltd.
(First time recipient of IR Special Award)
NH Foods top management’s philosophy with regards to raising corporate value is clear, andinvestor relations activities are conducted on a companywide basis with a full understanding of thisphilosophy.

Furthermore, the Company’s detailed investor relations tools, including analysis of

the changes in profits, easy to understand fact sheets and value chain diagrams, are also regarded
highly. The reporting on progress in achievement of its midterm business plan and quarterly
earnings results provided in earnings announcement presentations and meetings with investors
provides a sense of security to investors.

Information provided within the Company’s website isalso specific and easy to understand.

MITSUI & CO., LTD.
(Best IR Award recipient in 2008, first time recipient of IR Special Award)
MITSUI & CO. strives to fortify its investor relations activities continuously, and as part of its
efforts has established a midterm business plan that takes investors’ point of views into
consideration and leverages the Company’s communication with the capital market participants.
By doing so, MITSUI & CO. has been able to bridge the gap between itself and the capital markets
and improve the reputation of its investor relations activities. Amongst comprehensive trading
firms, MITSUI & CO. is able to explain its position with regards to returns relative to investment
and loan, and subsequent risks.

In particular, the Company has received highly favorable

evaluation for its explanations of its return on equity target and the uses of its cash flow. MITSUI& CO. also seeks to maintain fairness and consistency in the disclosure of information.

Recipients, IR Award for Small to Medium Capitalization Companies
Digital Advertising Consortium Inc.
(First time recipient of IR Award for Small to Medium Capitalization Companies)
Top management of Digital Advertising Consortium places a high priority upon investor relations
activities and they participate in presentations to explain their business strategy and answer
questions. The director responsible for investor relations also provides concrete examples in their8/9

explanations of businesses that investors take an interest in. And while the business environmentchanges dramatically, the Company conducts stable and consistent disclosure as part of its ongoinginvestor relations activities regardless of how its earnings are trending. Furthermore, DigitalAdvertising Consortium has also assigned a person to be responsible for investor relations and has
fortified the investor relations division. In addition, the Company has strengthened its various
contents placed on the Internet, including its smartphone website for individual investors and its
business report and presentation materials posted on its corporate website.

Fukuoka Realty Co., Ltd.
(First time recipient of IR Award for Small to Medium Capitalization Companies)
Fukuoka Realty has been evaluated highly for its proactive and continuous investor relations
activities as a company operating a listed REIT focused upon the geographic regions of Fukuoka
and other parts of Kyushu. The Company has taken steps to disclose various detailed information
ranging from the ratio of commission based rent received, activities to invigorate commercial
facilities, competitor analysis, and answers to questions about the impact of Prime Minister Abe’s
economic policies and the consumption tax upon its portfolio of properties. Another endeavorthat has come to be viewed favorably are the property tours.

The market looks forward toFukuoka Realty’s efforts to highlight the attractiveness of the Fukuoka region in its investor
relations activities.

Fukuoka Realty is the asset management company operating Fukuoka REIT

Co., Ltd.

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