Founder & CEO Bond Angle, LLC, Bond Angle, LLC

Vicki Bryan

Founder & CEO Bond Angle, LLC

Bond Angle, LLC

Insightful commentary and analysis on bond markets and market movers, including financial, economic, and industry catalysts and management shenanigans. 

High yield market investment research

Credit

<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/softbank-group-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:315:1" rel="noopener">Softbank Group (9984 JP)</a> was revealed on Friday as the massive NASDAQ whale helping to drive unprecedented option volume in recent weeks with its multi-billion dollar call-buying spree in the biggest tech names, as reported by <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/75587aa6-1f1f-4e9d-b334-3ff866753fa2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Financial Times</a> and <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/softbanks-bet-on-tech-giants-fueled-powerful-market-rally-11599232205" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Wall Street Journal</a> which confirmed speculation Thursday by <a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/speculation-emerges-over-identity-mystery-marketwide-call-buyer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zero Hedge</a>.Softbank's option trades added to $40 billion in call-buying over the past month traced to retail investors. The resulting frenzy netted Softbank <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/53aa19bb-fc9a-46fd-aafd-4bc3669ab161" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$4 billion in option trading gains—on paper—</a>on its own <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/softbanks-bet-on-tech-giants-fueled-powerful-market-rally-11599232205" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$50 billion notional exposure</a>. By comparison, Softbank's newly acquired long positions in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/amazon-com-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:409:1" rel="noopener">Amazon.com Inc (AMZN US)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alphabet-inc-cl-c" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11369:1" rel="noopener">Alphabet Inc Cl C (GOOG US)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/microsoft-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15273:1" rel="noopener">Microsoft Corp (MSFT US)</a>,  and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tesla-motors-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20279:1" rel="noopener">Tesla Motors (TSLA US)</a> are worth just <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/3eec59a3-cb51-487c-aacd-68a0c7e46f2f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$2 billion</a>, almost all that's left of the $10 billion Softbank spent late in the June quarter buying and selling mostly tech stocks at heady prices. Those holdings now are also subject to sharp declines triggered when Softbank's option scheme was revealed. Sure enough, Softbank <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/9e5827e9-893a-453e-b28d-88c1c0adc9d5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lost $9 billion in market value</a> on Monday.There's plenty of intense scrutiny underway to understand these trades and what their impact ultimately proves to be. I'm more interested in Softbank's drastic change in strategy and its alternative deployment of cash from $40 billion raised in stock fire sales forced by its wary banks and legacy mega-investors who cut him and Softbank off after decades of seemingly endless billions in available funding when his recklessness netted Softbank and Vision Fund tens of billions of dollars in record losses. This certainly is not what Softbank told investors to expect mere weeks ago.Instead, Softbank's actions signal arrogance, or desperation, or worse—that CEO Masayoshi Son feels unrestrained and back in his Star Wars Zone with $40 billion in fresh cash.<div class="content-highlight">Read on for a Bond Angle deep dive into the belly of Softbank, The Whale, and what Son feels free to do with its $40 billion in cash that was pledged to bolster Softbank's bloodied balance sheet.</div>

Softbank Group (9984 JP) was revealed on Friday as the massive NASDAQ whale helping to drive unprecedented option volume in recent weeks with its multi-billion dollar call-buying spree in the biggest tech names, as reported by Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal which confirmed speculation Thursday by Zero Hedge.Softbank's option trades added to $40 billion in call-buying over the past month traced to retail investors. The resulting frenzy netted Softbank $4 billion in option trading gains—on paper—on its own $50 billion notional exposure. By comparison, Softbank's newly acquired long positions in Amazon.com Inc (AMZN US), Alphabet Inc Cl C (GOOG US), Microsoft Corp (MSFT US),  and Tesla Motors (TSLA US) are worth just $2 billion, almost all that's left of the $10 billion Softbank spent late in the June quarter buying and selling mostly tech stocks at heady prices. Those holdings now are also subject to sharp declines triggered when Softbank's option scheme was revealed. Sure enough, Softbank lost $9 billion in market value on Monday.There's plenty of intense scrutiny underway to understand these trades and what their impact ultimately proves to be. I'm more interested in Softbank's drastic change in strategy and its alternative deployment of cash from $40 billion raised in stock fire sales forced by its wary banks and legacy mega-investors who cut him and Softbank off after decades of seemingly endless billions in available funding when his recklessness netted Softbank and Vision Fund tens of billions of dollars in record losses. This certainly is not what Softbank told investors to expect mere weeks ago.Instead, Softbank's actions signal arrogance, or desperation, or worse—that CEO Masayoshi Son feels unrestrained and back in his Star Wars Zone with $40 billion in fresh cash.Read on for a Bond Angle deep dive into the belly of Softbank, The Whale, and what Son feels free to do with its $40 billion in cash that was pledged to bolster Softbank's bloodied balance sheet.

Softbank's Son "Feeling The Force" With Options Funded With Cash It Had Pledged To Protect

Japan/Asia Long-Short, LightStream Research

Mio Kato

Japan/Asia Long-Short

Long-Short Analysis on Japan, Asia and the World

LightStream Research

LightStream conducts quantitatively rigorous and data-driven analysis with a focus on Japan and Asia.

We consistently cover the Tech, Consumer and Industrial sectors, and provide ECM and Events coverage more broadly.

We supplement traditional qualitative insights from company relationships with a robust quantitative foundation that examines as much historical data as is available.
We further refine the accuracy of our insights and calls through the use of alternative data to flesh out current trends, and through a valuation framework that emphasises non-superficial peer group selection and a proper attempt to understand the metrics and changes that have driven security valuations in the past.

Event-Driven

Tesla was not included in the S&amp;P 500 in its latest revision with the S&amp;P committee instead choosing to include the much smaller Etsy, Teradyne and Catalent. In addition, the company was the subject of a less than flattering review of its Full Self-Driving functionality by Consumer Reports. A review whose implications were underlined by an accident in China on Saturday where two people were killed and six injured with a Tesla driven by a 51-year-old woman involved. Downside risks are starting to accumulate here.

Tesla was not included in the S&amp;P 500 in its latest revision with the S&amp;P committee instead choosing to include the much smaller Etsy, Teradyne and Catalent. In addition, the company was the subject of a less than flattering review of its Full Self-Driving functionality by Consumer Reports. A review whose implications were underlined by an accident in China on Saturday where two people were killed and six injured with a Tesla driven by a 51-year-old woman involved. Downside risks are starting to accumulate here.

Tesla – Fully Self-Driven, but Badly And Not Into the S&P

TMT & Consumer Independent Equity Research Analyst, Obex Capital Research

Aaron Gabin

TMT & Consumer Independent Equity Research Analyst

TMT & Consumer Independent Equity Research

Obex Capital Research

“Obex” is Latin for Barriers to Entry. Obex Capital Management’s investment philosophy is driven by an intense focus on which business model’s Barriers to Entry are able to withstand the ever increasing competitive disruption in the TMT and Consumer Sectors.

Equity Bottom-Up

<div>Lots of interesting things stood out this week. Chief among them is that valuation has its limits...even for Apple and Tesla.</div><div><div class="content-highlight">Obex’s fundamental research process is focused on secular change in the TMT and Consumer sectors. We seek to differentiate between fundamental business analysis and security analysis. Before deciding if a security’s pricing and positioning merit a long or short position, we analyze the four pillars of business fundamentals (Secular Factors, TAM, Competitive Advantage, Business Model) in order to determine if this is a “good” or “not so good” opportunity.</div></div>

Lots of interesting things stood out this week. Chief among them is that valuation has its limits...even for Apple and Tesla.Obex’s fundamental research process is focused on secular change in the TMT and Consumer sectors. We seek to differentiate between fundamental business analysis and security analysis. Before deciding if a security’s pricing and positioning merit a long or short position, we analyze the four pillars of business fundamentals (Secular Factors, TAM, Competitive Advantage, Business Model) in order to determine if this is a “good” or “not so good” opportunity.

TMT Weekly:  3 Things that Stood Out The Week of 9/4/​​​​2020

As Tesla chooses the “unusual” option of conducting equity financing through an At The Market offering we think it is an apt time to take a trip down memory lane and examine some of the qualitative similarities of the company’s culture and situation with one of the previous companies that was going to change the world and disrupt all those who just didn’t get it… Enron.

As Tesla chooses the “unusual” option of conducting equity financing through an At The Market offering we think it is an apt time to take a trip down memory lane and examine some of the qualitative similarities of the company’s culture and situation with one of the previous companies that was going to change the world and disrupt all those who just didn’t get it… Enron.

Alpha-Centric ESG Research

Kyle Rudden

In <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/u-s-elections-and-esg-impacts-on-people-planet-and-profit" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:42655" rel="noopener">U.S. Elections and ESG: Impacts on People, Planet… and Profit</a>, I discussed major universally-relevant implications of the 2020 U.S. elections from an ESG and Triple Bottom Line perspective, and using the three TBL pillars for structure: 1) Environmental, 2) Social and Governance, and 3) Economic. That report was a deep dive, but nonetheless largely stayed on the macro level.
This Insight is one of several regionally-focused reports analysing the U.S. elections – candidates, their policy positions, and implications of evolving election outcome scenarios – on a more micro plane. Specifically, implications for regional markets, sectors, and stocks based on the policies of the Democrat and Republican tickets in conjunction with Congressional election result scenarios.
Consider this the inaugural report for North America-focused coverage of the 2020 elections. It will be updated, and more importantly built upon, over the next two months (all elections are held on 3 November) as significant events unfold. This initial report lays the basic foundation for that future coverage. In particular, it addresses the following topics (which also approximate an outline):
<ul>
<li>Overview of major policy proposals or plans for U.S. and Canadian markets, sectors, and stocks</li>
<li>U.S. and Canadian sectors/stocks that benefit/lose from Biden climate and infrastructure plans</li>
<li>U.S. and Canadian sectors/stocks that benefit/lose from Biden corporate tax policies and hikes</li>
<li>High-level summary of the most consequential points addressed in the aforementioned Insight</li>
</ul>

In U.S. Elections and ESG: Impacts on People, Planet… and Profit, I discussed major universally-relevant implications of the 2020 U.S. elections from an ESG and Triple Bottom Line perspective, and using the three TBL pillars for structure: 1) Environmental, 2) Social and Governance, and 3) Economic. That report was a deep dive, but nonetheless largely stayed on the macro level.
This Insight is one of several regionally-focused reports analysing the U.S. elections – candidates, their policy positions, and implications of evolving election outcome scenarios – on a more micro plane. Specifically, implications for regional markets, sectors, and stocks based on the policies of the Democrat and Republican tickets in conjunction with Congressional election result scenarios.
Consider this the inaugural report for North America-focused coverage of the 2020 elections. It will be updated, and more importantly built upon, over the next two months (all elections are held on 3 November) as significant events unfold. This initial report lays the basic foundation for that future coverage. In particular, it addresses the following topics (which also approximate an outline):

Overview of major policy proposals or plans for U.S. and Canadian markets, sectors, and stocks
U.S. and Canadian sectors/stocks that benefit/lose from Biden climate and infrastructure plans
U.S. and Canadian sectors/stocks that benefit/lose from Biden corporate tax policies and hikes
High-level summary of the most consequential points addressed in the aforementioned Insight


U.S. Elections and ESG: Impacts on People, Planet… and Profit (North America)

United States

Tesla Inc. operates as a multinational automotive and clean energy company. The Company designs and manufactures electric vehicles, battery energy storage from home to grid-scale, solar panels and solar roof tiles, and related products and services. Tesla owns its sales and service network and sells electric power train components to other automobile manufacturers.

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Tesla (TSLA US)

Softbank's Son "Feeling The Force" With Options Funded With Cash It Had Pledged To Protect

The market is eager to know what Softbank plans to do with a burgeoning war chest from bigger and bigger stock sales. The better question is why...

Vicki Bryan

Tesla – Fully Self-Driven, but Badly And Not Into the S&P

Tesla was not included in the S&P 500 in its latest revision with the S&P committee instead choosing to include the much smaller Etsy,...

Mio Kato

TMT Weekly: 3 Things that Stood Out The Week of 9/4/2020

Lots of interesting things so Obex’s fundamental research process is focused on secular change in the TMT and Consumer sectors. We seek to...

Aaron Gabin

Tesla – A Comparison With Enron

As Tesla chooses the “unusual” option of conducting equity financing through an At The Market offering we think it is an apt time to take a trip...

Mio Kato

U.S. Elections and ESG: Impacts on People, Planet… and Profit (North America)

In U.S. Elections and ESG: Impacts on People, Planet… and Profit, I discussed major universally-relevant implications of the 2020 U.S. elections...

Kyle Rudden

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)

Softbank's Son "Feeling The Force" With Options Funded With Cash It Had Pledged To Protect

The market is eager to know what Softbank plans to do with a burgeoning war chest from bigger and bigger stock sales. The better question is why...

Vicki Bryan

Tesla – Fully Self-Driven, but Badly And Not Into the S&P

Tesla was not included in the S&P 500 in its latest revision with the S&P committee instead choosing to include the much smaller Etsy,...

Mio Kato

TMT Weekly: 3 Things that Stood Out The Week of 9/4/​​​​2020

Lots of interesting things so Obex’s fundamental research process is focused on secular change in the TMT and Consumer sectors. We seek to...

Aaron Gabin

Tesla – A Comparison With Enron

As Tesla chooses the “unusual” option of conducting equity financing through an At The Market offering we think it is an apt time to take a trip...

Mio Kato

U.S. Elections and ESG: Impacts on People, Planet… and Profit (North America)

In U.S. Elections and ESG: Impacts on People, Planet… and Profit, I discussed major universally-relevant implications of the 2020 U.S. elections...

Kyle Rudden

TMT Weekly: 3 Things that Stood Out The Week of 9/4/2020