Hong Kong-based activist investor Oasis Management said on Thursday it would start a campaign against Kao Corp, demanding that the Japanese cosmetics and skincare firm redefine its brand portfolio and improve marketing.

“If Kao focused on its cosmetics and health & beauty segments and improved marketing, Oasis believes its stock price would exceed 10,000 yen per share, a 76 per cent upside from current levels,” the hedge fund investor said in a statement.

Kao’s share price rose more than 6 per cent in morning trade following the release the statement from Oasis.

Oasis said Kao should prioritize the international growth of its core cosmetics and skincare brands, and hire a chief marketing officer or equivalent with global experience to transform its marketing strategy.

Kao has a product portfolio that can compete directly with Beiersdorf, L’Oreal, Estee Lauder and Procter & Gamble, and turn it into a global leader, the activist investor said.

Kao said Oasis’ argument lacked sufficient understanding of its portfolio management and restructuring plans, but said it planned to engage with Oasis and welcomed the new perspectives on issues that the company faces.

Kao’s management strategy and mid-term plan includes carrying out “complete structural reforms of the cosmetics business”, alongside reorganising inefficient business lines such as its baby diaper business, it said.

Oasis said in a presentation Kao’s “bloated brand portfolio” is uneconomical, and that it has failed to exploit global expansion opportunities and lost market share to competitors by not spending enough on marketing.

Oasis did not say how much stock it owns in Kao.

• Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki and Anton Bridge; Editing by Sandra Maler and Tom Hogue, of Reuters.