Asean-focused. Ex-Head of Thai Research

Athaporn Arayasantiparb, CFA

Asean (Thailand) Focused Independent Research

M Corp Review

M Corp is led by Athaporn Arayasantiparb who served as Head of Research for UOB and ANZ in Thailand and was an award-winning telecoms analyst at UBS in 2010 (AsiaMoney Thailand category) and Regional Strategist for DMG in Singapore. Prior to that, he also served as Kasikornbank credit analyst and scholar. He has a total work experience of 17 years, of which 14 were in research and 4 in research management roles. He started his career as an engineer for PTT and currently manages family investments. He holds an MBA from Stern (NYU) and CFA Charter since 2006. Apart from IPO Radar, which focuses on future listings, MCorp Review also provides six on-going thematic series ranked by frequency in descending order, namely: 1) Silicon Stories (technology) 2) Sathorn Series (financial services) 3) Thai-Coons (billionaire origin stories) 4) Reality Check (data-driven, investigative) 5) Thai Media Spotlight; and 6) Thai Macro Watch (global market drivers).

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

Netflix faces many challenges in Thailand compared to more developed markets, such as: 1) prevalence of piracy; 2) weak broadband Internet infrastructure; and 3) the chicken-and-egg problem of scale. The problems are not insurmountable, but at the moment, we see very little evidence of their success here. Rival video streaming apps such as Hooq and Primetime have also made their debut here by partnering with mobile operators AIS and DTAC for distribution. <table class="table table-striped"><tbody>
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<td>Stocks</td>
<td>Business</td>
<td style="text-align: center;">Shr pr (Bt/sh)</td>
<td style="text-align: center;">Mkt cap</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>…

Netflix faces many challenges in Thailand compared to more developed markets, such as: 1) prevalence of piracy; 2) weak broadband Internet infrastructure; and 3) the chicken-and-egg problem of scale. The problems are not insurmountable, but at the moment, we see very little evidence of their success here. Rival video streaming apps such as Hooq and Primetime have also made their debut here by partnering with mobile operators AIS and DTAC for distribution. 

Stocks
Business
Shr pr (Bt/sh)
Mkt cap

…

Silicon Stories G: Netflix's Uphill Battle in Thailand

<div class="content-highlight">We ran through the list of Valentine-themed stocks and found that it's almost impossible to find anything reasonable from a valuation standpoint these days. (AIS used to be a Valentine themed stock, but it isn't anymore. More on that later yo.) Valentines is just over a week from today. Technically, less than 1% of the Thais are Christians, but if you think that's gonna stop teenagers from celebrating Valentines, think again! Since Chinese New Year came early ( <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/momentum-stocks-for-the-chicken-new-year" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:8321">Momentum Stocks for the Chicken</a>…</div>

We ran through the list of Valentine-themed stocks and found that it's almost impossible to find anything reasonable from a valuation standpoint these days. (AIS used to be a Valentine themed stock, but it isn't anymore. More on that later yo.) Valentines is just over a week from today. Technically, less than 1% of the Thais are Christians, but if you think that's gonna stop teenagers from celebrating Valentines, think again! Since Chinese New Year came early ( Momentum Stocks for the Chicken…

Quick Run Down on Valentine Stocks...Sad!

Only Gets Hotter from Here On. Summer typically starts in February in Thailand. In the South, there are only two seasons, but elsewhere, summer will stretch between February to around May. We are not saying every stock in this article is a buy. What we're saying is that for them, summer usually acts as an important sales catalyst or at least a time when they gain attention from investors yo. The rainy season, which starts in late May and goes all the way to October, is by far the country's…

Only Gets Hotter from Here On. Summer typically starts in February in Thailand. In the South, there are only two seasons, but elsewhere, summer will stretch between February to around May. We are not saying every stock in this article is a buy. What we're saying is that for them, summer usually acts as an important sales catalyst or at least a time when they gain attention from investors yo. The rainy season, which starts in late May and goes all the way to October, is by far the country's…

In this review, we highlight the importance for investors to: 1) not 'jump the gun' and sell on companies that are in decline; and 2) think logically about the macro picture, since those may have an impact on whether companies can recover or would lose relevance in the marketplace altogether.From our observations, the companies in Thailand that do turn around tend to follow one or more of these four measures, namely: 1) operations: a complete transformation rather than minor patch-ups (eg. KARMART, IVL); 2) competitive strategy: changing the frame of reference (PIZZA...now part of MINT); 3) debt restructuring (BLAND, TPI); and 4) marketing: re-branding (eg. DTAC, BTS). Whether you are stuck with certain investments or thinking about investing in potential turnaround plays, observing these four traits or steps could be helpful.

In this review, we highlight the importance for investors to: 1) not 'jump the gun' and sell on companies that are in decline; and 2) think logically about the macro picture, since those may have an impact on whether companies can recover or would lose relevance in the marketplace altogether.From our observations, the companies in Thailand that do turn around tend to follow one or more of these four measures, namely: 1) operations: a complete transformation rather than minor patch-ups (eg. KARMART, IVL); 2) competitive strategy: changing the frame of reference (PIZZA...now part of MINT); 3) debt restructuring (BLAND, TPI); and 4) marketing: re-branding (eg. DTAC, BTS). Whether you are stuck with certain investments or thinking about investing in potential turnaround plays, observing these four traits or steps could be helpful.

Turnarounds: Finding A Phoenix In the Land of the Dead

Equity Bottom-Up

We attended the shareholder meetings of Osotspa, the country's top domestic energy drink market leader, and Wave Media, a subsidiary of BEC World that does a patchwork of different businesses. Some key highlights include:<ul>
<li>
One-off operational weakness. Revenues were temporarily weak in 2018 due to the cancellation of the Unicharm contract, but the outlook is positive due to the resumption of its glass smelter.</li>
<li>
Discussion on beverage business. Shareholders suggested adding new coffee and tea flavors to the product line, which Osotspa promised to consider.</li>
<li>
WAVE's struggles. WAVE highlighted challenges it faced in both the restaurant and transit ad business, but said it remains committed to English tuition first and restaurants second. It is using franchising model to reduce capital requirements of its own.</li>
</ul>

We attended the shareholder meetings of Osotspa, the country's top domestic energy drink market leader, and Wave Media, a subsidiary of BEC World that does a patchwork of different businesses. Some key highlights include:

One-off operational weakness. Revenues were temporarily weak in 2018 due to the cancellation of the Unicharm contract, but the outlook is positive due to the resumption of its glass smelter.

Discussion on beverage business. Shareholders suggested adding new coffee and tea flavors to the product line, which Osotspa promised to consider.

WAVE's struggles. WAVE highlighted challenges it faced in both the restaurant and transit ad business, but said it remains committed to English tuition first and restaurants second. It is using franchising model to reduce capital requirements of its own.


IPO Stalker: Osotspa's First Public Meeting in a Century

Thailand

Wave Exponential is an investment holding company that operates in language institutions, integrated carbon credit solutions, and wellness healthcare businesses in Thailand. The company runs English language schools under the Wall Street English brand and provides consulting, project development, and trading for carbon credits. It also focuses on developing products and solutions for human health and wellness, including medical cannabis cultivation. Headquartered in Bangkok, Thailand, the company was founded in 1988.

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Wave Exponential (WAVE TB)

Silicon Stories G: Netflix's Uphill Battle in Thailand

Netflix faces many challenges in Thailand compared to more developed markets, such as: 1) prevalence of piracy; 2) weak broadband Internet...

Athaporn Arayasantiparb, CFA

Quick Run Down on Valentine Stocks...Sad!

We ran through the list of Valentine-themed stocks and found that it's almost impossible to find anything reasonable from a valuation standpoint...

Athaporn Arayasantiparb, CFA

This Ain't Winterfell, Summer Is Coming!

Only Gets Hotter from Here On. Summer typically starts in February in Thailand. In the South, there are only two seasons, but elsewhere, summer...

Athaporn Arayasantiparb, CFA

Turnarounds: Finding A Phoenix In the Land of the Dead

In this review, we highlight the importance for investors to: 1) not 'jump the gun' and sell on companies that are in decline; and 2) think...

Athaporn Arayasantiparb, CFA

IPO Stalker: Osotspa's First Public Meeting in a Century

We attended the shareholder meetings of Osotspa, the country's top domestic energy drink market leader, and Wave Media, a subsidiary of BEC World...

Athaporn Arayasantiparb, CFA

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