Oct. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Mazda Motor Corp., 13.8 percent owned by Ford Motor Co., rose the most in more than two months after saying it will sell new shares to raise capital and narrowing its full-year loss forecast.

Mazda rose 7.6 percent, the most since July 30, to close at 199 yen on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The Hiroshima-based company will raise as much as 96 billion yen ($1.1 billion) by selling as many as 363 million new shares and 96.8 million existing shares held by the carmaker, it said yesterday. It also narrowed its loss forecast for the year ending in March.

“Mazda’s action spread relief that its balance sheet and cash flow will improve,” said Koichi Ogawa, chief portfolio manager at Daiwa SB Investments Ltd. in Tokyo, which manages 3.4 trillion yen. “Its revision of earnings also provided positive news.”

The automaker follows All Nippon Airways Co., Nomura Holdings Inc. and Mizuho Financial Group Inc. in raising cash by selling equity. Mazda’s stock fell for seven consecutive trading days before announcing the share sale, losing 20 percent. The shares are up 30 percent this year.

Rumors ‘Hammered’ Stock

“There were earlier rumors of a share sale, which hammered the stock before the announcement,” said Mitsuo Shimizu, an analyst at Tokyo-based Cosmo Securities Co. “Investors may now be viewing this positively, as companies gather capital for possibly expanding businesses.”

Mazda will use the funds to develop less polluting cars and improve its financial base, it said. The carmaker has said it will boost fuel efficiency by 30 percent on average by 2015 from 2008 levels by introducing new gasoline and diesel engines.

The company expects a second straight annual loss after the global recession cut automobile demand and a stronger yen reduced revenue from overseas sales. Mazda narrowed the forecast yesterday to a 26 billion yen loss from 50 billion yen, citing government incentives that have helped lift car sales, including the U.S. “cash for clunkers” program.

Honda Motor Co., Japan’s second-largest carmaker, raised its full-year profit estimate in July, also citing government stimulus measures in its largest markets. Toyota Motor Corp. narrowed its net loss estimate in August, to 450 billion yen from 550 billion yen.

Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford reduced its stake in Mazda last November.

To contact the reporter on this story: Kiyori Ueno in Tokyo at kueno2@bloomberg.net; Makiko Kitamura in Tokyo at mkitamura1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 6, 2009 03:48 EDT