Asian Equities Analyst, Logistics & Transport, Tracking Traffic

Daniel Hellberg

Asian Equities Analyst, Logistics & Transport

Tracking Traffic

Focusing on Asian logistics, transportation, and travel companies

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul>
<li>The scale of fraud in a new US federal criminal complaint – US$60M of fake postage – mirrors the recent dramatic growth of Chinese e-commerce platforms that target US consumers</li>
<li>The case also highlights the importance of securing cheap last-mile US distribution for the Chinese e-commerce platforms selling inexpensive goods directly to US consumers</li>
<li>It’s unclear which of the Chinese platforms benefited from the scheme, but the incident should refocus investors’ attention on logistics as a critical piece of their business models </li>
</ul>


The scale of fraud in a new US federal criminal complaint – US$60M of fake postage – mirrors the recent dramatic growth of Chinese e-commerce platforms that target US consumers
The case also highlights the importance of securing cheap last-mile US distribution for the Chinese e-commerce platforms selling inexpensive goods directly to US consumers
It’s unclear which of the Chinese platforms benefited from the scheme, but the incident should refocus investors’ attention on logistics as a critical piece of their business models 


The Curious Case of $60M of Bogus US Postage or 'How Can They Can Make Money Exporting $5 Shirts?!'

<ul>
<li>On Monday evening in the US, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/trip-com-group-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:180:1" rel="noopener">Trip.com (TCOM US)</a> reported Q422 results that beat low expectations, but shares in the US traded down about 3% in Tuesday's session</li>
<li>As for guidance, management offered few specifics but noted a sharp improvement in booking activity early in 2023, but also highlighted an outbound capacity bottleneck at the airlines</li>
<li>Just as Covid's negative impacts papered over the secular challenges facing Trip.com, the dramatic near-term recovery in travel activity also obscures longstanding threats</li>
</ul>


On Monday evening in the US, Trip.com (TCOM US) reported Q422 results that beat low expectations, but shares in the US traded down about 3% in Tuesday's session
As for guidance, management offered few specifics but noted a sharp improvement in booking activity early in 2023, but also highlighted an outbound capacity bottleneck at the airlines
Just as Covid's negative impacts papered over the secular challenges facing Trip.com, the dramatic near-term recovery in travel activity also obscures longstanding threats


Trip.com Q4/2022 Results: Back to Reality?

IPOs and Catalysts/Events, Global Equity Research Ltd

Arun George

IPOs and Catalysts/Events

Uncompromised, Independent, Conflict-Free Research

Global Equity Research Ltd

Global Equity Research was started in 2017 by a group of experienced research professionals. It was founded on a passionate belief in the importance and the need for uncompromised, independent, conflict-free research. We aim to provide differentiated and actionable primary and bottom up fundamental research.

Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/chindata-group-holdings-adr" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:29274:1" rel="noopener">Chindata Group (CD US)</a>’s 3Q22 results beat both revenue and adjusted EBITDA consensus estimates. Chindata raised its full-year guidance for the second time this year.</li>
<li>Chindata continues to attract rumours of takeover interest, most recently from China Merchants. Its track record of beating guidance, modest leverage and beaten-down rating make it a target. </li>
<li>A forward EV/EBITDA multiple of 10.8x, in line with <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/21-vianet-group-inc-adr" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8489:1" rel="noopener">21Vianet Group (VNET US)</a>’s multiple implied by its founder’s offer (at US$8.20), would imply Chindata’s price of US$8 per ADS.  </li>
</ul>



Chindata Group (CD US)’s 3Q22 results beat both revenue and adjusted EBITDA consensus estimates. Chindata raised its full-year guidance for the second time this year.
Chindata continues to attract rumours of takeover interest, most recently from China Merchants. Its track record of beating guidance, modest leverage and beaten-down rating make it a target. 
A forward EV/EBITDA multiple of 10.8x, in line with 21Vianet Group (VNET US)’s multiple implied by its founder’s offer (at US$8.20), would imply Chindata’s price of US$8 per ADS.  


2023 High Conviction: Chindata's Track Record & Rating Makes It a Takeover Target

Research on Tech Companies

Evelyn Zhang

Equity Bottom-Up

New Oriental Education & Techn / Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>Oriental Selection achieves high-speed user growth through bilingual livestreaming, thanks to Douyin's  algorithmic recommendation mechanism before 6/18 ecommerce, after 6/18 the increase in the follower numbers &amp; GMV dropped sharply.</li>
<li>The unit price of the product is below average, due to the focus on produce and books, Agricultural livestreaming has always been a difficult to grow category</li>
<li>10%-15% Commission  is lower than industry average, and subsequent supply chain control and 1st party products have lower margins.</li>
</ul>


Oriental Selection achieves high-speed user growth through bilingual livestreaming, thanks to Douyin's  algorithmic recommendation mechanism before 6/18 ecommerce, after 6/18 the increase in the follower numbers &amp; GMV dropped sharply.
The unit price of the product is below average, due to the focus on produce and books, Agricultural livestreaming has always been a difficult to grow category
10%-15% Commission  is lower than industry average, and subsequent supply chain control and 1st party products have lower margins.


<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/didi-chuxing-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:27467:1" rel="noopener">DiDi Global (DIDI US)</a> is the world's largest mobility technology platform by annual active users and by average daily transactions for the twelve months ended 31 March 2021, according to CIC. DiDi has endured a torrid time since its listing on 30 June to raise net proceeds of $4,331.6 million at $14.00 per ADS. The shares are trading 40% below its IPO price as days after its listing, DiDi’s apps were taken down from app stores in China by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC). DiDi ran afoul of CAC when it pressed ahead with its listing, despite CAC asking it to put the listing on hold while it conducted a cybersecurity review of its collection and use of personal information. Subsequently, the official Xinhua news agency on 10 October claimed that the CAC probe was aimed at “effectively preventing potential national security risks relating to procurement, data processing and overseas listings.”DIDi has been ensnared by regulatory probes into its pricing mechanisms and the way it treats its drivers. DiDi also been subject to rumours in the press that the Chinese government is weighing asserting state control by taking a stake in the company. Press reports have also suggested that DiDi is planning to delist from the US which was later confirmed by DiDi to be false.Since the regulatory clampdown, DiDi has not released its 2Q21 results or provided any financial guidance. However, due to the regulatory restrictions, DiDi is losing market share and pricing power to competitors in China. On 6 September, Cao Cao Mobility, a peer, raised RMB3.8 billion ($588 million) from Chinese state-owned funds to accelerate its expansion. DiDi’s average daily user count declined 30% to 10.9 million in August from 15.6 million in June, according to <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/aurora-mobile-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:27264:1" rel="noopener">Aurora Mobile Ltd (JG US)</a>.DiDi continues to polarise opinions with some investors suggesting that the stock can double from current levels while others are wary due to unpredictable regulatory risks. Due to the number of unknowns, we examine DiDi's outlook through scenarios analysis. A key difference between the bull and bear case is the timing for the reinstatement of DiDi’s apps on the app stores which will once again enable DiDi to grow market share and regain pricing power. <div class="content-highlight">Our bull-case SoTP valuation points to a 22% upside while our bear-case SoTP valuation points to a -19% downside to the last close price of $8.56 per ADS. Consequently, the shares seem fairly valued and may appeal to investors with a higher risk appetite.  </div>

DiDi Global (DIDI US) is the world's largest mobility technology platform by annual active users and by average daily transactions for the twelve months ended 31 March 2021, according to CIC. DiDi has endured a torrid time since its listing on 30 June to raise net proceeds of $4,331.6 million at $14.00 per ADS. The shares are trading 40% below its IPO price as days after its listing, DiDi’s apps were taken down from app stores in China by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC). DiDi ran afoul of CAC when it pressed ahead with its listing, despite CAC asking it to put the listing on hold while it conducted a cybersecurity review of its collection and use of personal information. Subsequently, the official Xinhua news agency on 10 October claimed that the CAC probe was aimed at “effectively preventing potential national security risks relating to procurement, data processing and overseas listings.”DIDi has been ensnared by regulatory probes into its pricing mechanisms and the way it treats its drivers. DiDi also been subject to rumours in the press that the Chinese government is weighing asserting state control by taking a stake in the company. Press reports have also suggested that DiDi is planning to delist from the US which was later confirmed by DiDi to be false.Since the regulatory clampdown, DiDi has not released its 2Q21 results or provided any financial guidance. However, due to the regulatory restrictions, DiDi is losing market share and pricing power to competitors in China. On 6 September, Cao Cao Mobility, a peer, raised RMB3.8 billion ($588 million) from Chinese state-owned funds to accelerate its expansion. DiDi’s average daily user count declined 30% to 10.9 million in August from 15.6 million in June, according to Aurora Mobile Ltd (JG US).DiDi continues to polarise opinions with some investors suggesting that the stock can double from current levels while others are wary due to unpredictable regulatory risks. Due to the number of unknowns, we examine DiDi's outlook through scenarios analysis. A key difference between the bull and bear case is the timing for the reinstatement of DiDi’s apps on the app stores which will once again enable DiDi to grow market share and regain pricing power. Our bull-case SoTP valuation points to a 22% upside while our bear-case SoTP valuation points to a -19% downside to the last close price of $8.56 per ADS. Consequently, the shares seem fairly valued and may appeal to investors with a higher risk appetite.  

China

Beijing Douyin Information Service Co. Ltd. provides online information and contents. The Company develops and operates short video platform, original short video community, news platform, and other related products. Beijing Douyin Information Service offers services worldwide.

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ByteDance (1439927D CH)

The Curious Case of $60M of Bogus US Postage or 'How Can They Can Make Money Exporting $5 Shirts?!'

Thie story of fake US postage being used to distribute Chinese goods to US consumers isn't just a fascinating story -- it could potentially have...

Tracking Traffic

Trip.com Q4/2022 Results: Back to Reality?

As China emerges from Covid, old challenges remain for Trip.com. After posting solid Q422 results and pointing to signs of a strong recovery, these...

Daniel Hellberg

2023 High Conviction: Chindata's Track Record & Rating Makes It a Takeover Target

Chindata raised its full-year guidance for the second time this year. Its track record of beating guidance, modest leverage and beaten-down rating...

Arun George

A New New Oriental?

After the recent doldrums, the education giant New Orient re-entered the spotlight recently with its new found streaming success. But can it last?

Evelyn Zhang

DiDi Global: Time to Book a Ride?

Our bull-case SoTP valuation points to a 22% upside while our bear-case SoTP valuation points to a -19% downside. The shares seem fairly valued and...

Arun George

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