Stock prices for major Japanese anime and content-related companies have seen remarkable growth over the past decade, significantly outperforming the broader market.
Their position continues to remain strong despite the concerns over U.S. tariffs under the Trump administration, according to an analysis published by Anime Eiga (Tadashi Sudo).
Leading anime producer Toei Animation (known for One Piece) is a perfect example of this trend. The company’s stock price stood at 3,530 yen as of April 24, 2025, a more than 15-fold increase from its adjusted price of 236 yen on March 31, 2015.
Over the past year alone, while the Nikkei index fell significantly from its peak, Toei Animation’s stock rose 35%. The company’s market capitalization recently exceeded 700 billion yen.
Other content-focused companies like Sony Group, Bandai Namco Holdings, KADOKAWA, and film giant Toho have also experienced sharp stock price increases.
Toho’s stock climbed 56% in the past year to 8,320 yen (as of April 24, 2025), and the company recently announced plans to establish an “IP & Anime Business” as a fourth core division.
The strong performance is further reflected in market indicators, with the Nikkei reporting on April 16, 2025, that the top-performing Japanese stock ETF in 2024 was the Global X Games & Anime Japan Equity ETF.
Tadashi Sudo noted that the resilience of these stocks stem partly from content being viewed as a safe haven for investors during uncertain times.
As digital and intangible goods, anime and games are largely unaffected by tariffs imposed on physical exports like cars or electronics. This export-driven sector has thus remained attractive despite fears of a global recession linked to U.S. trade policies.
Beyond being insulated from tariffs, the anime industry itself has been growing significantly. This growth potential is reportedly receiving fresh attention from investors seeking alternatives as risks rise elsewhere.
However, Sudo cautioned against assuming that the sector is entirely risk-free. The unpredictability of the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration means that restrictions could potentially extend beyond physical goods to target “soft content” industries. There are also concerns that outsourcing trends in creative industries could become targets.
Furthermore, high valuation metrics like Price-to-Earnings (PER) and Price-to-Book (PBR) ratios for some content companies reflect high future growth expectations. Should these expectations falter, sharp stock price declines could follow.
Despite these risks, the Japanese anime companies today have much better global market access and significant potential in secondary markets derived from intellectual property compared to two decades ago.
Source: Anime Eiga
