Senior Technology Analyst, Japanese Equities, LightStream Research

Scott Foster

Senior Technology Analyst, Japanese Equities

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.

Equity Bottom-Up

Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) / Equity Bottom-Up

Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC)

The Trump administration is considering whether or not to add Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC, 981 HK) to the Commerce Department's "Entity List" - the same mechanism that was used to restrict the export of American technology to Huawei. This would cause SMIC a great deal of inconvenience and further undercut American semiconductor production equipment (SPE) sales to China. A sword is hanging over the share prices of SMIC itself and leading American SPE makers including Applied Materials (AMAT), Lam Research (LRCX) and KLA (KLAC). Another act of economic war intended to cripple China's high-tech industries, it would also convince the Chinese government - if any further convincing is necessary - that eliminating dependence on American technology is an absolute necessity.Some form of retaliation also seems likely. Has anyone calculated the valuations of American listed companies assuming no further growth in sales in China, declining sales in China, or no sales in China at all? Not only high-tech is at risk.Potential beneficiaries include Japanese and European SPE makers including Tokyo Electron (8035 JP), Lasertec (6920 JP), Screen Holdings (7735 JP) and ASM International (ASM). American commentators have claimed that semiconductors cannot be produced without American technology, but that is not true.Nevertheless, the immediate concern is the impact of the U.S-China trade war on semiconductor capital spending, which in the short to medium term at least is negative for all concerned.

The Trump administration is considering whether or not to add Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC, 981 HK) to the Commerce Department's "Entity List" - the same mechanism that was used to restrict the export of American technology to Huawei. This would cause SMIC a great deal of inconvenience and further undercut American semiconductor production equipment (SPE) sales to China. A sword is hanging over the share prices of SMIC itself and leading American SPE makers including Applied Materials (AMAT), Lam Research (LRCX) and KLA (KLAC). Another act of economic war intended to cripple China's high-tech industries, it would also convince the Chinese government - if any further convincing is necessary - that eliminating dependence on American technology is an absolute necessity.Some form of retaliation also seems likely. Has anyone calculated the valuations of American listed companies assuming no further growth in sales in China, declining sales in China, or no sales in China at all? Not only high-tech is at risk.Potential beneficiaries include Japanese and European SPE makers including Tokyo Electron (8035 JP), Lasertec (6920 JP), Screen Holdings (7735 JP) and ASM International (ASM). American commentators have claimed that semiconductors cannot be produced without American technology, but that is not true.Nevertheless, the immediate concern is the impact of the U.S-China trade war on semiconductor capital spending, which in the short to medium term at least is negative for all concerned.  

Japanese makers of semiconductor equipment have recently told us that (1) their customers continue to order new equipment and have not yet reduced their capital spending plans, but that (2) installations have been delayed or prevented due to restrictions introduced in response to COVID-19.  This is not sustainable.The situation appears to be easing somewhat in China, but as worsening economic conditions undercut demand for electronic devices around the world, it may not matter.Screen Holdings - the top maker of cleaning equipment for the semiconductor industry and coater/developers for the flat panel display industry - reduced FY Mar-20 guidance at the end of January, cutting their operating profit estimate by nearly half due to lower than expected capacity utilization and an unfavorable sales mix. Now they are talking about the unavoidable impact of deteriorating economic conditions.Screen's share price has dropped by 57% since January to 20x management's new EPS guidance for FY Mar-20. But the company is likely to drop back into the red this quarter and, in our estimation, lose money in FY Mar-21 as a whole. As economists increasingly talk about depression, not recession, downside risk remains.The company plans to announce FY Mar-20 results and guidance for FY Mar-21 on May 12.

Japanese makers of semiconductor equipment have recently told us that (1) their customers continue to order new equipment and have not yet reduced their capital spending plans, but that (2) installations have been delayed or prevented due to restrictions introduced in response to COVID-19.  This is not sustainable.The situation appears to be easing somewhat in China, but as worsening economic conditions undercut demand for electronic devices around the world, it may not matter.Screen Holdings - the top maker of cleaning equipment for the semiconductor industry and coater/developers for the flat panel display industry - reduced FY Mar-20 guidance at the end of January, cutting their operating profit estimate by nearly half due to lower than expected capacity utilization and an unfavorable sales mix. Now they are talking about the unavoidable impact of deteriorating economic conditions.Screen's share price has dropped by 57% since January to 20x management's new EPS guidance for FY Mar-20. But the company is likely to drop back into the red this quarter and, in our estimation, lose money in FY Mar-21 as a whole. As economists increasingly talk about depression, not recession, downside risk remains.The company plans to announce FY Mar-20 results and guidance for FY Mar-21 on May 12. 

Screen Holdings (7735 JP): Additional Downside Risk as the Economy Weakens

Japan/Asia Long-Short, LightStream Research

Mio Kato

Japan/Asia Long-Short

Event-Driven

On Thursday we highlighted a number of stock pairs that had seen extreme levels of relative performance dislocations, speculating that this was due to relative value unwinds that were being rushed for completion prior to the long weekend. This morning the skews are reversing and with Nikkei now outperforming Topix (+02.7% vs. -0.87% at the time of this writing) we believe this opportunity is being realised quickly. Our thoughts on next steps below.

On Thursday we highlighted a number of stock pairs that had seen extreme levels of relative performance dislocations, speculating that this was due to relative value unwinds that were being rushed for completion prior to the long weekend. This morning the skews are reversing and with Nikkei now outperforming Topix (+02.7% vs. -0.87% at the time of this writing) we believe this opportunity is being realised quickly. Our thoughts on next steps below.

Japan Long Weekend Portfolio Blowout Theme Is Working Quickly

We previously highlighted the strong skew between names which have a heavy weighting in Topix vs. those which have a heavy weighting in the Nikkei. Given extreme looking skews even in individual names it does not seem unreasonable that some relative value fund(s) are exiting positions aggressively prior to what could be a key long weekend for Japan with potentially heavy volatility on Monday. We examine some striking performance discrepancies below.

We previously highlighted the strong skew between names which have a heavy weighting in Topix vs. those which have a heavy weighting in the Nikkei. Given extreme looking skews even in individual names it does not seem unreasonable that some relative value fund(s) are exiting positions aggressively prior to what could be a key long weekend for Japan with potentially heavy volatility on Monday. We examine some striking performance discrepancies below.

What Is Getting Blown Out of Portfolios Before the Long Weekend in Japan?

'Quantamental' Japan Specialist, LightStream Research

Campbell Gunn

'Quantamental' Japan Specialist

ja research

ja research is an independent research platform focused exclusively on Japanese equities. Leveraging data and graphic analysis provided by Japan Analytics, we provide insights on small and medium-sized companies that have been ignored by the sell-side as well as challenging conventional wisdom on larger companies. We also offer analyst and corporate access, the latter with translation if required. 

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/115/540/original/2020-01-30_04-53-40.png?1580327644" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="115540"></figure><div class="content-caption">Source • Japan Analytics</div>29TH JANUARY ROUNDUP - Thre were 74 results and 30 forecasts or revisions announcements yesterday. Of the 32 larger-cap companies reporting results, seven saw year-on-year declines in their quarterly OP of greater than 25%, while three - <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nec-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:17084:1" rel="noopener">NEC (6701 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/cyberagent-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8197:1" rel="noopener">CyberAgent(4751 JP)</a>, and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/valuecommerce-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:7970:1" rel="noopener">ValueCommerce (2491 JP)</a> grew profits by more than 25%, with the last of the three showing the strongest revenue growth. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/omron-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15904:1" rel="noopener">Omron (6645 JP)</a> saw sales fall by 23%. Our market composite cap-weighted Results Score declined by 8bps to 0.99FORECASTS - <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/canon-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1:1" rel="noopener">Canon (7751 JP)</a> released the most optimistic forecasts and account for the 24bps uptick in our Forecast/Revision Score; however, in terms of OP the FY2020 forecast is the same as the FY2016 actual result which was the second-worst outcome in the last decade after FY2019. The weakest outlook came from <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/screen-holdings-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:5563:1" rel="noopener">Screen (7735 JP)</a> (-28% v TTM OP), which, when combined with <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/advantest-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18107:1" rel="noopener">Advantest (6857 JP)</a>'s third-quarter results, should go some way to puncturing the current fad for owning SPE companies.<figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/115/543/original/2020-01-30_05-28-22.png?1580329720" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="115543"></figure><div class="content-caption">Source • Japan Analytics</div>POST-RELEASE RPS CHANGES - Of the larger-cap companies announcing the day before yesterday or pre-close yesterday, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/obic-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1273:1" rel="noopener">OBIC (4684 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/obic-business-consultants" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:17383:1" rel="noopener">Obic Business Consultants (4733 JP)</a>, and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/sakai-moving-service-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:10020:1" rel="noopener">Sakai Moving Service (9039 JP)</a> saw Relative Price Score declines. In contrast, the two Canon group companies, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/m3-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:13316:1" rel="noopener">M3 (2413 JP)</a>, and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/sekisui-jushi-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:7654:1" rel="noopener">Sekisui Jushi (4212 JP)</a> rose.  In the DETAIL below, we review our Sector Timelines and the announcements from <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/fanuc-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:752:1" rel="noopener">Fanuc (6954 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/canon-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1:1" rel="noopener">Canon (7751 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nec-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:17084:1" rel="noopener">NEC (6701 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/cyberagent-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8197:1" rel="noopener">CyberAgent (4751 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/omron-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15904:1" rel="noopener">Omron (6645 JP)</a>, and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/advantest-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18107:1" rel="noopener">Advantest(6857 JP)</a>.

Source • Japan Analytics29TH JANUARY ROUNDUP - Thre were 74 results and 30 forecasts or revisions announcements yesterday. Of the 32 larger-cap companies reporting results, seven saw year-on-year declines in their quarterly OP of greater than 25%, while three - NEC (6701 JP), CyberAgent(4751 JP), and ValueCommerce (2491 JP) grew profits by more than 25%, with the last of the three showing the strongest revenue growth. Omron (6645 JP) saw sales fall by 23%. Our market composite cap-weighted Results Score declined by 8bps to 0.99FORECASTS - Canon (7751 JP) released the most optimistic forecasts and account for the 24bps uptick in our Forecast/Revision Score; however, in terms of OP the FY2020 forecast is the same as the FY2016 actual result which was the second-worst outcome in the last decade after FY2019. The weakest outlook came from Screen (7735 JP) (-28% v TTM OP), which, when combined with Advantest (6857 JP)'s third-quarter results, should go some way to puncturing the current fad for owning SPE companies.Source • Japan AnalyticsPOST-RELEASE RPS CHANGES - Of the larger-cap companies announcing the day before yesterday or pre-close yesterday, OBIC (4684 JP), Obic Business Consultants (4733 JP), and Sakai Moving Service (9039 JP) saw Relative Price Score declines. In contrast, the two Canon group companies, M3 (2413 JP), and Sekisui Jushi (4212 JP) rose.  In the DETAIL below, we review our Sector Timelines and the announcements from Fanuc (6954 JP), Canon (7751 JP), NEC (6701 JP), CyberAgent (4751 JP), Omron (6645 JP), and Advantest(6857 JP). 

🇯🇵 JAPAN • Results & Revisions Daily Roundup - 29th January - 6954▲ 7751► 6701▲ 4751▲ 6645▼6857▼

Japan

SCREEN Holdings Co Ltd.  manufactures and sell semiconductors, FPD devices, commercial printing and printed circuit boards(PCB). The company also provides additional services for its products.

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SCREEN Holdings (7735 JP)

Sword of Trump Hanging Over SMIC

xxx The Trump administration is considering whether or not U.S. agencies are in discussions to determine whether Semiconductor Manufacturing...

Scott Foster