Nintendo's market value Japan's second-highest

The good times continue to roll for Nintendo. In August, the Kyoto, Japan-based publisher retained its monthly sales-leader position for consoles and handhelds in North America, selling a combined tally of 438,000 Wiis in the US and Canada, as well as 434,300 total Nintendo DSs.

The success has significantly buoyed Nintendo's stock price. Since hitting a year low of 28,320 yen (about $247) in January, the company's stock price has followed a fairly consistent climb, which peaked in July at 61,400 yen (about $536). August proved to be a rocky month for Nintendo due to fluctuations in the dollar-to-yen exchange rate. However, the gaming giant's fortunes took a turn earlier this month, rebounding 5.6 percent to 55,100 yen (about $481) after CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets analysts raised Nintendo's stock-price target by 25 percent to 100,000 yen (about $873).

Those projections are thus far proving accurate. Reuters is reporting today that Nintendo's stock price rose 3.1 percent to 59,200 yen (about $517) on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The climb secures Nintendo's place as the second-most valued stock for actively traded companies in Japan.

The company's market value stands at 8.39 trillion yen (about $73.1 billion), which surpasses Canon's 8.12 trillion yen (about $70.7 billion) value, yet at the same time significantly lags behind Toyota, which currently stands at 24 trillion yen (about $209 billion).

However, Nintendo isn't likely to hold its number-two position for long. Reuters notes that Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, which is currently suspended from trading as it undergoes a stock split, is currently valued at 11 trillion yen (about $95.8 billion).