Toyota rose 0.4% in Tokyo to close at 3,715 yen before the announcement. The stock has gained 15% in 2011 after declining 17% last year.
China, India, Brazil
Fast-growing China, India and Brazil offer the biggest opportunities for Toyota, whose shares underperformed Volkswagen AG and Hyundai Motor Co. in 2010.
The automaker relies on North America for about 60% of its operating profit, excluding exports, according to the company. As part of its focus on emerging markets, Toyota added the Etios compact in India in December and is readying the small car for sale in China, Thailand and Brazil.
Toyota's sales in those regions made up about 40% of global deliveries in 2010.
'Behind Rivals'
"I thought Toyota would come out with a vision that leads its competitors, but I didn't see anything like that," said Tatsuya Mizuno, a director at Mizuno Credit Advisory in Tokyo. "Toyota is definitely behind rivals in emerging markets and in China we are now entering a period where we need to be cautious."
China's passenger-car sales growth in February fell to the slowest in more than two years after the government ended vehicle-buying incentives and a week-long national holiday stymied demand.
The Toyota City, Japan-based company's slimmer board may help it adapt to challenges and changes in the global industry more quickly, said Takeshi Miyao, an analyst at consulting company Carnorama in Tokyo. Honda, Japan's third- largest carmaker, also reorganized its management, cutting the number of company directors to 12 from 20, it said Feb. 22.
Toyota plans to add new hybrid models while bolstering sales of its best-selling Prius gas-electric car. Toyota will start selling 5-seater and 7-seater Prius wagons in Japan from late April and a compact version by the end of the year, Makoto Okabe, deputy chief engineer for the Prius "family" of cars, told reporters in Tokyo on March 7.