May 3, 2010: Yamaha moves to raise research funds
Yamaha Motor Co. is raising funds in a bid to bolster its research into evolving technology, including electric-powered motorcycles and more environmentally friendly outboard marine motors.
The manufacturer recently announced its intention to sell an additional 55,000 shares to raise $805 million. The announcement of the public offering of shares caused the company’s stock to drop substantially on the Toyko Stock Exchange, as Yamaha’s stock declined more than 9 percent, according to a recent report by Bloomberg.
“Investors aren’t happy about the dilution of the stock,” Fumiyuki Nakanishi, a senior strategist at SMBC Friend Securities Co. in Tokyo, said in the Bloomberg report.
Yamaha, in an online press release, noted some of the additional funding would go toward:
• Electric-powered motorcycles, which could be re-released in the Japanese market and later in the Taiwanese and European markets;
• Electrical power-assisted bicycles for the Japanese market and in the rapidly growing European market; and developing the technology for next-generation, four-stroke outboard motor models that are up to 30 percent more efficient in their fuel use.
