Two ways to tap into the EV shift

Article Excerpt

Japan’s top two carmakers continue to rebound from the pandemic with rising production and earnings. They are also expanding their electric vehicle offerings, which will set them up for more growth. TOYOTA MOTOR CO. ADRs $203 is a buy. The stock (New York symbol TM; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; ADRs outstanding: 1.4 billion; Market cap: $284.2 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 2.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.toyota.com) gives you exposure to the world’s largest automaker by production. It gets about half of its sales from markets outside of Japan. Toyota’s sales in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024 rose 7.0%, to 9.44 million vehicles from 8.82 million in fiscal 2023. Stronger sales in North America, Europe and Asia offset a 3.7% drop in Japan. Sales of EVs (including hybrid cars, which combine an internal combustion engine with an electric motor) rose 35.3% to 3.86 million vehicles. The higher volumes also lifted revenue in the year by 13.0%, to $311.0 billion from…