Just like every other year, the middle week of August has been a sleepy old time in Japan. Unless, of course, you're a Sharp Corp. investor. At the end of a manic week punctuated by reports and denials of restructuring moves, the troubled electronics maker was worth 12% less on the Tokyo Stock Exchange than it was a week earlier, nearly a third less that at the start of the month, and close to three-quarters less than its value at the start of the year.

On Friday, Sharp was the heaviest traded single stock on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, with 221 million shares changing hands - approximately 13% of all trading in an otherwise quiet day.

Things started off pretty quietly, though. After opening a tad higher, the stock traded marginally lower for much of the session with traders uninspired by news that the company is considering a host of measures to raise funds, including selling overseas factories.

But with around an hour to go in the session, the stock jumped as much as 13% after the Nikkei reported that Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. is looking to double the 10% stake it has agreed to but in Sharp as the latter seeks to raise much-needed funds.

But that burst of enthusiasm quickly wore off as investors took on board the potential complexities of rearranging that deal. In the end, the stock closed 5.1% higher on the day.