Asian Hedge Fund Manager, Long Short Equity, Macro

David Mudd

Cross Asset Strategy

<ul>
<li>The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio gained 9.7% in May, outperforming its benchmark by 10.57%.  The portfolio has outperformed Hong Kong indexes by 57% to 75% since its inception in 10/2024.</li>
<li>The portfolio has a Sharpe ratio of 1.37 since its inception, with a mean excess annualized return of 21% and a beta of 1.2.  </li>
<li>At the end of May, we sold our remaining positions in the mining and materials sectors and added positions in the power, consumer and property sectors.</li>
</ul>


The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio gained 9.7% in May, outperforming its benchmark by 10.57%.  The portfolio has outperformed Hong Kong indexes by 57% to 75% since its inception in 10/2024.
The portfolio has a Sharpe ratio of 1.37 since its inception, with a mean excess annualized return of 21% and a beta of 1.2.  
At the end of May, we sold our remaining positions in the mining and materials sectors and added positions in the power, consumer and property sectors.


HK/China Equity Long-Short

Osbert Tang, CFA

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul>
<li>With a range of 34.5-68.1%, our five best calls in 2024 generated an average return of 54.1% YTD, outperforming the Hang Seng Index by 26.2pp. </li>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/china-communications-construction-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:265:1" rel="noopener">China Communications Construction (1800 HK)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/dongfang-electric-corporation-limited" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1251:1" rel="noopener">Dongfang Electric (1072 HK)</a> are expected to sustain strengths into 2025 on market value management and pick-up in new orders.</li>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/xinhua-winshare-publishing-media-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15072:1" rel="noopener">Xinhua Winshare (811 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/china-everbright-environment-group-limited" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15946:1" rel="noopener">China Everbright Environment (257 HK)</a>, and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/sitc-international-holdings" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15301:1" rel="noopener">SITC International (1308 HK)</a> may hold their share price, but gains are unlikely to be as much as 2024.</li>
</ul>


With a range of 34.5-68.1%, our five best calls in 2024 generated an average return of 54.1% YTD, outperforming the Hang Seng Index by 26.2pp. 

China Communications Construction (1800 HK) and Dongfang Electric (1072 HK) are expected to sustain strengths into 2025 on market value management and pick-up in new orders.

Xinhua Winshare (811 HK), China Everbright Environment (257 HK), and SITC International (1308 HK) may hold their share price, but gains are unlikely to be as much as 2024.


Our Best Calls in 2024: Review and Outlook for 2025

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/china-conch-venture-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:19943:1" rel="noopener">China Conch Venture Holdings (586 HK)</a> is now at negative stub value, the low-end since 2020. This is despite a 16.4% growth in 1H22 core earnings to Rmb542m.</li>
<li>The company's waste-to-energy (WTE) capacity will increase by 25% in FY23 and its internal target calls for an earnings CAGR of 33% between FY21 and FY25 for WTE segment.</li>
<li>We should not underestimate the potential from new business initiatives including cathode and anode materials and lithium battery recycling. They have good medium-to-long term exposure to China's new energy industry.</li>
</ul>



China Conch Venture Holdings (586 HK) is now at negative stub value, the low-end since 2020. This is despite a 16.4% growth in 1H22 core earnings to Rmb542m.
The company's waste-to-energy (WTE) capacity will increase by 25% in FY23 and its internal target calls for an earnings CAGR of 33% between FY21 and FY25 for WTE segment.
We should not underestimate the potential from new business initiatives including cathode and anode materials and lithium battery recycling. They have good medium-to-long term exposure to China's new energy industry.


Conch Venture (586 HK): An Overlooked Value Play

<ul>
<li>
The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio posted a -0.5% return for April. Since its inception, the HK Alpha portfolio has outperformed the HK indexes by 38.69% to 60.42%.  </li>
<li>Overall alpha generation remains at 64% of overall returns.  The Sharpe ratio for the portfolio is 1.15, compared with 0.89 for the benchmark.</li>
<li>As the US retreats from its war in Iran, we have repositioned the portfolio by adding exposure to the AI-related tech sector, including platform, agentic, and hardware.</li>
</ul>



The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio posted a -0.5% return for April. Since its inception, the HK Alpha portfolio has outperformed the HK indexes by 38.69% to 60.42%.  
Overall alpha generation remains at 64% of overall returns.  The Sharpe ratio for the portfolio is 1.15, compared with 0.89 for the benchmark.
As the US retreats from its war in Iran, we have repositioned the portfolio by adding exposure to the AI-related tech sector, including platform, agentic, and hardware.


<ul>
<li>The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio's March performance was -11.25%, compared with -7.75% for the benchmark index.  The Hang Seng Index lost 6.92% for the month.</li>
<li>Performance was hurt by its exposure to the oil equipment and fertilizer sectors, which normally benefit from higher energy prices. China imposed price and export restrictions in the energy sector.</li>
<li>At the end of March, we positioned the portfolio to better cope with the difficulties in China's economy and in the global market due to persistently high energy prices.</li>
</ul>


The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio's March performance was -11.25%, compared with -7.75% for the benchmark index.  The Hang Seng Index lost 6.92% for the month.
Performance was hurt by its exposure to the oil equipment and fertilizer sectors, which normally benefit from higher energy prices. China imposed price and export restrictions in the energy sector.
At the end of March, we positioned the portfolio to better cope with the difficulties in China's economy and in the global market due to persistently high energy prices.


Hong Kong

China Everbright Environment Group is a global leader in environmental protection, specializing in integrated environmental solutions. It is recognized as the world's largest waste-to-energy investor and operator, also providing waste management, water treatment, and renewable energy services. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Hong Kong.

China Everbright Environment Group (257 HK)

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China Everbright Environment Group (257 HK)

HONG KONG ALPHA PORTFOLIO: (May 2026)

The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio gained 9.7% in May, outperforming its benchmark by 10.57%. The portfolio has outperformed Hong Kong indexes by 57%...

David Mudd

Our Best Calls in 2024: Review and Outlook for 2025

Our best calls for 2024 outperformed HSI, with CCCC and Dongfang Electric expected to sustain into 2025. Xinhua Winshare, China Everbright Env,...

Osbert Tang, CFA

Conch Venture (586 HK): An Overlooked Value Play

The market has deeply undervalued Conch Venture's waste-to-energy business as reflected by the negative stub value. New business initiatives and...

Osbert Tang, CFA

HONG KONG ALPHA PORTFOLIO: (April 2026)

The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio posted a -0.5% return for April. Since its inception, the HK Alpha portfolio has outperformed the HK indexes by...

David Mudd

HONG KONG ALPHA PORTFOLIO: (March 2026)

Guoquan Food announced that management sold a 4.74% stake at a discounted price of $3.8 to boost the liquidity of the shares. We viewed the move...

David Mudd

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)

HONG KONG ALPHA PORTFOLIO: (May 2026)

The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio gained 9.7% in May, outperforming its benchmark by 10.57%. The portfolio has outperformed Hong Kong indexes by 57%...

David Mudd

Our Best Calls in 2024: Review and Outlook for 2025

​Our best calls for 2024 outperformed HSI, with CCCC and Dongfang Electric expected to sustain into 2025. Xinhua Winshare, China Everbright Env,...

Osbert Tang, CFA

Conch Venture (586 HK): An Overlooked Value Play

The market has deeply undervalued Conch Venture's waste-to-energy business as reflected by the negative stub value. New business initiatives and...

Osbert Tang, CFA

HONG KONG ALPHA PORTFOLIO: (April 2026)

The Hong Kong Alpha portfolio posted a -0.5% return for April. Since its inception, the HK Alpha portfolio has outperformed the HK indexes by...

David Mudd

HONG KONG ALPHA PORTFOLIO: (March 2026)

Guoquan Food announced that management sold a 4.74% stake at a discounted price of $3.8 to boost the liquidity of the shares. We viewed the move...

David Mudd

Our best calls for 2024 outperformed HSI, with CCCC and Dongfang Electric expected to sustain into 2025. Xinhua Winshare, China Everbright Env,...