Investment Advisors, JL Warren Capital

Junheng Li

Investment Advisors

JL Warren Capital

JL Warren Capital LLC is a leading independent equity research firm focused on Chinese companies and listed multinationals in China. We employ a bottom-up research approach that takes great care to avoid the acquisition of material non-public information. Through investigative due diligence including channel surveys and interviews, our research helps clients to pinpoint the dislocations in the market.

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<div class="content-highlight"> Retail (+6%), Wholesale (+6%) and Production (+2%)</div> Auto Sales Rebounded to 6% yoy1.7 mm passenger vehicles were sold (both wholesale and retail) in July.  Wholesale, retail and production volume grew 6%, 6%, and 2% year-over-year, respectively, reflecting a rebound in auto industry.Through 7months (7M 2017), retail, wholesale, and production in China grew 2%, 3%, and 5% year-over-year respectively.   SUV sales continued to drive the industry growth. 7M 2017, SUV sales grew by 17.5%, 18.6% and…

 Retail (+6%), Wholesale (+6%) and Production (+2%) Auto Sales Rebounded to 6% yoy1.7 mm passenger vehicles were sold (both wholesale and retail) in July.  Wholesale, retail and production volume grew 6%, 6%, and 2% year-over-year, respectively, reflecting a rebound in auto industry.Through 7months (7M 2017), retail, wholesale, and production in China grew 2%, 3%, and 5% year-over-year respectively.   SUV sales continued to drive the industry growth. 7M 2017, SUV sales grew by 17.5%, 18.6% and…

China's Auto Sales Rebounded in July 2017

Equity Bottom-Up

Price Target: HK$5 (Downside: 50%)<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/128" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:128:1">Great Wall Motor Company (H) (2333 HK)</a> surged nearly 26% to 9.92 HKD from the recent trough price of 7.88 HKD (in May), primarily driven by the optimism relating to the launch of Wey series in June.  The new series named after the company’s CEO is hoped to turn around the declining sales trend of the OEM.  Some analysts have openly expressed great optimism of the unit volume, assuming once the production bottleneck is solved.Our variant view is based upon detailed research on the product as well as <s>the</s> marketplace. We believe that despite the positive headlines regarding the tech upgrades that the car showcases, the model has fundamental design flaws.   One of the key issues is the fuel consumption, which appears to be significantly higher than the company claims, based on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmw1Sp_RJ5c" target="_blank">independent analysis</a> of an experienced car reviewer nicknamed No. 38 Auto Review Center. Once the inflated mileage per gallon (MPG) is fully exposed, we believe that consumers are turned off reflecting a sharp decline in sales of the new car. Perhaps even more importantly, our main concern about the company is whether and how it can survive the coming new emission policy to be effective in 2018.   On June 13th, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) issued “The Integrated Management Approach to the Fuel Consumption of Passenger Vehicle Enterprises and New Energy Vehicle (Draft for Comments)” for public opinion. The Draft introduced an energy conservation point system that calculates each OEMs’ points earned from EV sales, offset by the negative points by emissions from the traditional cars.

Price Target: HK$5 (Downside: 50%)Great Wall Motor Company (H) (2333 HK) surged nearly 26% to 9.92 HKD from the recent trough price of 7.88 HKD (in May), primarily driven by the optimism relating to the launch of Wey series in June.  The new series named after the company’s CEO is hoped to turn around the declining sales trend of the OEM.  Some analysts have openly expressed great optimism of the unit volume, assuming once the production bottleneck is solved.Our variant view is based upon detailed research on the product as well as the marketplace. We believe that despite the positive headlines regarding the tech upgrades that the car showcases, the model has fundamental design flaws.   One of the key issues is the fuel consumption, which appears to be significantly higher than the company claims, based on the independent analysis of an experienced car reviewer nicknamed No. 38 Auto Review Center. Once the inflated mileage per gallon (MPG) is fully exposed, we believe that consumers are turned off reflecting a sharp decline in sales of the new car. Perhaps even more importantly, our main concern about the company is whether and how it can survive the coming new emission policy to be effective in 2018.   On June 13th, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) issued “The Integrated Management Approach to the Fuel Consumption of Passenger Vehicle Enterprises and New Energy Vehicle (Draft for Comments)” for public opinion. The Draft introduced an energy conservation point system that calculates each OEMs’ points earned from EV sales, offset by the negative points by emissions from the traditional cars.  

Short Great Wall Auto: Gas Guzzler SUVs to Become Liability Under China's New Energy Regulation

Doing bespoke work since 2002....., Custom Products Group

Patrick Hansen

Doing bespoke work since 2002.....

Custom Products Group

Custom Products was started 14 years ago at Lehman Brothers by current co-founder Patrick Hansen, CFA. After 3 years at Lehman, Patrick moved the team to Macquarie Securities where Simon Rigney (co-founder) joined. 3 years ago we took Custom Products independent. 

Our core strength can be summed up three words. 1- Customization - we have very little off the shelf products and most work is done on a one on one bespoke basis. 2- Speed - We pride ourselves in our ability to get requests back to the client very quickly. 3- Confidentiality - We do not redistribute. There is no grace period where we wait a week and then mass blast. Any request stops with that client.

We continue to track the Analyst Upgrades / Downgrades over the previous 2 week to identify potential trends in popularity. Which Sectors / Countries do the Analysts like and which ones do they not. Overall there were approx. 20% more downgrades than upgrades over the last 2 weeks.<h2>% of Upgrades relative to Total (Country Level)</h2><figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/024/226/original/1.png?1492102101" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="24226"></figure><div class="content-caption">Source: Custom Products</div>Taiwan and India had the most upgrades relative to total recommendations in the last two weeks. In Taiwan, 37 names had a least 1 upgrade. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/745" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:745:1">Hon Hai</a>…

We continue to track the Analyst Upgrades / Downgrades over the previous 2 week to identify potential trends in popularity. Which Sectors / Countries do the Analysts like and which ones do they not. Overall there were approx. 20% more downgrades than upgrades over the last 2 weeks.% of Upgrades relative to Total (Country Level)Source: Custom ProductsTaiwan and India had the most upgrades relative to total recommendations in the last two weeks. In Taiwan, 37 names had a least 1 upgrade. Hon Hai…

Most Popular / Unpopular Sectors and Countries in Asia - Ex Japan (Last 2 Weeks)

Leading Independent Investment Research, Morningstar, Inc.

Morningstar

Leading Independent Investment Research

Morningstar, Inc.

Morningstar, Inc. is a leading provider of independent investment research in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. We offer an extensive line of products and services for individual investors, financial advisors, asset managers, and retirement plan providers and sponsors. 

Morningstar provides data on more than 500,000 investment offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and similar vehicles, along with real-time global market data on more than 16 million equities, indexes, futures, options, commodities, and precious metals, in addition to foreign exchange and Treasury markets. Morningstar also offers investment management services through its investment advisory subsidiaries, with more than $180 billion in assets under advisement or management as of June 30, 2015. We have operations in 27 countries.

Download the Morningstar Fact Sheet : http://corporate.morningstar.com/US/documents/MarketingFactSheets/AboutMorningstarFactsheet.pdf

This week the Macau government proposed to the Second Standing Committee of Macau Legislative Assembly to allow smoking only in smoking lounges in casinos effective on Jan. 1, 2019, one year later than our existing expectation. Our current forecasts across our narrow moat coverage universe already factor in a negative mid-single-digit percentage point impact to VIP play in 2018, and postponing that one year is not expected to have any significant impact to our fair value estimates. Our current fair value estimates per share are HKD 17 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/472" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:472:1">MGM China Holdings Ltd (2282 HK)</a>, HKD 36 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/182" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:182:1">Sands China Ltd (1928 HK)</a>, HKD 14 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/473" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:473:1">Wynn Macau Ltd (1128 HK)</a>, USD 17 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/810" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:810:1">Melco Crown Entertainment ADR (MPEL US)</a>, HKD 36 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/806" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:806:1">Galaxy Entertainment Group Limited (27 HK)</a>, HKD 6.6 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/805" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:805:1">SJM Holdings Ltd (880 HK)</a>, $133 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/606" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:606:1">Wynn Resorts Ltd (WYNN US)</a>, $56 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/807" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:807:1">Las Vegas Sands Corp (LVS US)</a>, and $29.50 for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/16227" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:16227:1">MGM Resorts International (MGM US)</a>. We continue to see Wynn trading at an attractive margin of safety.The revised bill creates a level playing field for casino operators. We have confirmed with a Macau legislative assembly member that the revised bill outlines that all VIP smoking gaming areas will be closed and that all casinos will be able to establish smoking lounges on both VIP and mass gaming floors. Therefore, under the proposed bill newer casinos will be able to establish smoking lounges in VIP gaming areas, while the older casinos will lose the smoking premium mass and VIP smoking area. As a result, Cotai casinos as a whole stand to gain market share at the expense of Macau peninsula casinos.Analyst: Chelsea Tam

This week the Macau government proposed to the Second Standing Committee of Macau Legislative Assembly to allow smoking only in smoking lounges in casinos effective on Jan. 1, 2019, one year later than our existing expectation. Our current forecasts across our narrow moat coverage universe already factor in a negative mid-single-digit percentage point impact to VIP play in 2018, and postponing that one year is not expected to have any significant impact to our fair value estimates. Our current fair value estimates per share are HKD 17 for MGM China Holdings Ltd (2282 HK), HKD 36 for Sands China Ltd (1928 HK), HKD 14 for Wynn Macau Ltd (1128 HK), USD 17 for Melco Crown Entertainment ADR (MPEL US), HKD 36 for Galaxy Entertainment Group Limited (27 HK), HKD 6.6 for SJM Holdings Ltd (880 HK), $133 for Wynn Resorts Ltd (WYNN US), $56 for Las Vegas Sands Corp (LVS US), and $29.50 for MGM Resorts International (MGM US). We continue to see Wynn trading at an attractive margin of safety.The revised bill creates a level playing field for casino operators. We have confirmed with a Macau legislative assembly member that the revised bill outlines that all VIP smoking gaming areas will be closed and that all casinos will be able to establish smoking lounges on both VIP and mass gaming floors. Therefore, under the proposed bill newer casinos will be able to establish smoking lounges in VIP gaming areas, while the older casinos will lose the smoking premium mass and VIP smoking area. As a result, Cotai casinos as a whole stand to gain market share at the expense of Macau peninsula casinos.Analyst: Chelsea Tam

Expected Macau Smoking Ban Creates a Level Playing Field for Operators

Investing in high growth Asian frontier economies., Asia Frontier Capital

Scott Osheroff

Investing in high growth Asian frontier economies.

Asia Frontier Capital

Asia Frontier Capital Ltd. is a pioneering fund management company based in Hong Kong that specializes in investing in high growth Asian frontier economies by managing the AFC Asia Frontier Fund , AFC Iraq Fund and the AFC Vietnam Fund.

The AFC Asia Frontier Fund invests in public equities of Asian frontier countries that are seeing increasing consumption due to favorable demographic trends, rising incomes and high GDP growth. The fund invests in listed equities of companies that have their principal business activities in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Iraq, Laos, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. The AFC Asia Frontier Fund is positioned to take advantage of the continuing economic shifts in these countries and offers high returns combined with significant diversification opportunities. This fund is directed by the founder and CEO of Asia Frontier Capital, Thomas Hugger, who has been investing in frontier markets across Asia and Africa for more than 20 years.

The AFC Iraq Fund was launched on the 26th June 2015 and aims to achieve long-term capital appreciation for investors by capturing value and growth potential in the post conflict high-growth & resource rich Iraq market. The fund emphasises long term investment horizon to truly capture the opportunity in Iraq. The fund's investable universe consists of locally listed companies that have their principal business activities in Iraq as well as foreign listed companies that have the majority of the business in Iraq as a whole including the prosperous Kurdish Region of Iraq (KRI). The AFC Iraq Fund offers access to investments in post conflict recovery potential of Iraq, including the KRI, and/or stability in its territory. The AFC Iraq Fund is managed by Asia Frontier Capital (Iraq) Limited, Cayman Islands under the executive leadership team of Thomas Hugger (CEO & Fund Manager) and Ahmed Tabaqchali (CIO) who have more than 47 years of investment experience as well as an extensive background covering global, emerging, frontier and MENA markets.

The AFC Vietnam Fund invests exclusively in listed Vietnamese equities to capture value in growth companies with a focus on the small to medium size companies. This market segment offers a unique investment opportunity as the valuation gap between large- and small-cap stocks in Vietnam is presently much wider than in comparable neighboring markets and the valuations are significantly depressed versus their regional peers. The fund adopts a fundamental-quantitative approach and employs an in-house earnings model to identify attractive companies where we see high growth opportunities. In conjunction with targeting the maximum upside potential the portfolio has been structured to mitigate corporate government and liquidity risks. The fund invests in a diversified portfolio of 70-90 attractively valued companies to carefully control concentration risk.  This approach allows the fund to sell, or buy, positions without having a significant market impact. The fund is directed under the executive leadership of Thomas Hugger and Andreas Vogelsanger who have more than 50 years combined experience managing investments in frontier markets, Asia and around the world.

For more information about the fund, management team and investment strategy please contact us at info@asiafrontiercapital.com.

In line with our process of being on the ground in the countries we invest in, Scott Osheroff, Analyst at Asia Frontier Capital, traveled to Laos to visit portfolio companies and other companies on our shortlist. The photos in this article are all by AFC.

In line with our process of being on the ground in the countries we invest in, Scott Osheroff, Analyst at Asia Frontier Capital, traveled to Laos to visit portfolio companies and other companies on our shortlist. The photos in this article are all by AFC.

Asia Frontier Capital Travel Report: Laos

China

Guangzhou Automobile Group Company Limited manufactures and sells automobiles. The Company vehicles, motorcycles, and other products. Guangzhou Automobile Group also provides automobile parts manufacturing, automotive business services, automotive finance, and other services.

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Guangzhou Automobile Group (601238 CH)

China's Auto Sales Rebounded in July 2017

Retail (+6%), Wholesale (+6%) and Production (+2%) Auto Sales Rebounded to 6% yoy1.7 mm passenger vehicles were sold (both wholesale and retail)...

JL Warren Capital

Short Great Wall Auto: Gas Guzzler SUVs to Become Liability Under China's New Energy Regulation

Price Target: HK$5 (Downside: 50%)Great Wall Motor Company (H) (2333 HK) surged nearly 26% to 9.92 HKD from the recent trough price of 7.88 HKD (in...

JL Warren Capital

Most Popular / Unpopular Sectors and Countries in Asia - Ex Japan (Last 2 Weeks)

We continue to track the Analyst Upgrades / Downgrades over the previous 2 week to identify potential trends in popularity. Which Sectors /...

Custom Products Group

Expected Macau Smoking Ban Creates a Level Playing Field for Operators

This week the Macau government proposed to the Second Standing Committee of Macau Legislative Assembly to allow smoking only in smoking lounges in...

Morningstar, Inc.

Asia Frontier Capital Travel Report: Laos

In line with our process of being on the ground in the countries we invest in, Scott Osheroff, Analyst at Asia Frontier Capital, traveled to Laos...

Asia Frontier Capital

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