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Smartkarma Daily Briefs

Most Read: Japan Post Bank, SK Telecom, Kokusai Electric , Nws Holdings, Origin Energy, Li Auto , Kenedix Office Investment Co and more

By | Daily Briefs, Most Read

In today’s briefing:

  • October 2023 TOPIX Free Float Review – $22.6bn to Trade and JPB (7182) The Biggie
  • Korea – Positioning in Stocks That Could Have Global Passive Flows
  • Kokusai Electric IPO – Weaker Demand Than We Expected
  • NWS (659 HK): Pre-Cons Done. Now, About That Final Divvie …
  • Origin/Brookfield: ACCC Rubber Stamped. Now Shareholders Will Have Their Say
  • Kokusai Electric IPO – Not Wholly Convinced, One Needs to Look past the Cycle
  • TOPIX October 2023 Rebalance: Round Trip Trade of US$20bn; Upweights Outperform Downweights
  • HSTECH Index Rebalance Preview: Round-Trip Trade of US$556m in December
  • Kenedix Merger: Significant Passive Inflows Expected in Three Weeks
  • Origin Energy (ORG AU): ACCC Approves, Shareholders Justifiably Want a Bump


October 2023 TOPIX Free Float Review – $22.6bn to Trade and JPB (7182) The Biggie

By Travis Lundy

  • The TOPIX October Free Float Weight Review details are out. This is the biggest FFW review of the year. This year, it’s $11.3bn a side. 
  • As discussed in Japan Post Bank (7182) – The October TOPIX FFW Adjustment, JPB is the big buy. $2bn/23d of ADV. There is $2bn to buy of trading cos too.
  • There are lots of large names to trade in both directions. If you have interests to sell the buys and vice versa, it is good to know the flows.


Kokusai Electric IPO – Weaker Demand Than We Expected

By Mio Kato

  • Kokusai Electric announced its pricing range today, setting it rather tightly at ¥1,830-1,840. 
  • This is slightly below the initial indicative price of ¥1,890 pointing to modest demand. 
  • That is a rather more tepid response than we initially expected given that this is the first sizable offering in some time.

NWS (659 HK): Pre-Cons Done. Now, About That Final Divvie …

By David Blennerhassett

  • Back on the 26 June, Chow Tai Fook (CTFE) made a pre-conditional voluntary Offer for New World (17 HK)‘s 60.88%-held NWS (659 HK) at HK$9.15/share, a 22.2% premium to undisturbed.
  • The Cheng-family-backed CTFE and connected parties held 45.24% of NWD, therefore the parent was effectively injecting ~US$2.75bn of cash into NWD for its NWS stake.
  • The pre-cons are now done, with a 13 October despatch date for the Composite Document. Technically, this could be wrapped up before NWS’ final dividend ex-date. That’s worth exploring further.

Origin/Brookfield: ACCC Rubber Stamped. Now Shareholders Will Have Their Say

By David Blennerhassett

  • Brookfield Asset Management/MidOcean Energy’s tilt for Origin Energy (ORG AU), faced two major hurdles. 
  • The first was ACCC approval. Not just over competition issues, but also the perceived/apparent public benefit from Brookfield’s future commitment to renewable generation. ACCC has now cleared the transaction. 
  • The second is currying favour with shareholders, several of whom, including AustralianSuper (13.68% stake), reckon the Offer is substantially below long-term value. This needs a bump.

Kokusai Electric IPO – Not Wholly Convinced, One Needs to Look past the Cycle

By Sumeet Singh

  • KKR is looking to raise around US$730m via selling a stake in Kokusai Electric (6525 JP) (KE) in its Japan IPO.
  • KE main business activities consist of the manufacturing, sales and maintenance service of semiconductor manufacturing equipment.
  • In our previous notes we have looked at the company’s past performance and undertook a peer comparison. In this note, we talk about valuations.

TOPIX October 2023 Rebalance: Round Trip Trade of US$20bn; Upweights Outperform Downweights

By Brian Freitas

  • At the October rebalance, Free Float Weight (FFW) will be reduced on 284 stocks and increased on 458 stocks. 43 stocks will be removed from Phased Weight Reduction.
  • Estimated one-way turnover is 1.77% resulting in a one-way trade of ¥1.45tn. 364 stocks have over 4 days ADV to trade, 97 stocks have over 8 days ADV to trade.
  • Over the last 6 months, the stocks with inflows (>US$25m) have outperformed the stocks with outflows (>US$25m) with most of the outperformance coming in the last three months.

HSTECH Index Rebalance Preview: Round-Trip Trade of US$556m in December

By Brian Freitas

  • With no stocks in inclusion or deletion zone, we do not expect any constituent changes for the Hang Seng TECH Index (HSTECH INDEX) in December.
  • Capping changes will result in a one-way turnover of 2.16% and that will result in a round-trip trade of US$556m.
  • The impact of capping changes has doubled over the last month and there will be more changes from now till the official capping is done on 28 November.

Kenedix Merger: Significant Passive Inflows Expected in Three Weeks

By Brian Freitas


Origin Energy (ORG AU): ACCC Approves, Shareholders Justifiably Want a Bump

By Arun George

  • The ACCC has approved Brookfield/EIG’s proposed acquisition of Origin Energy (ORG AU). The Brookfield/EIG offer is A$5.78 and US$2.19 per share, worth A$8.83 at the last close. 
  • The bidders now face the challenge of convincing shareholders to accept the offer and avoid incurring ticking fees. The scheme booklet will be despatched in the coming weeks.
  • Several shareholders have justifiably argued that the offer is light. Our SoTP valuation is A$9.46 per share, 7.1% above the implied offer price of A$8.83.

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Daily Brief TMT/Internet: Kokusai Electric , Huawei Technology, Rainforest Life Pte Ltd, Atlas Visa Inc, Jabil Circuit, Godaddy Inc Class A, Motorola Solutions, Oracle Corp, Aampe and more

By | Daily Briefs, TMT/Internet

In today’s briefing:

  • Kokusai Electric IPO – Weaker Demand Than We Expected
  • Kokusai Electric IPO – Not Wholly Convinced, One Needs to Look past the Cycle
  • New Huawei Tech-Powered Electric Car Launches With a Bang
  • Rainforest Secures US$21.5M Funding, Reports 9x Growth in FY2022 Revenue
  • Peak XV Leads $12m Round in Startup that Simplifies Visa Applications
  • Jabil Inc.: How Strategic Focus on Key Tech Areas is Paving the Way for Future Success! – Major Drivers
  • GoDaddy Inc.: How AI-Powered Innovations are Revolutionizing Their Customer Retention! – Major Drivers
  • Motorola Solutions Inc.: Discover the Hidden Gems in the Products and SI Segment! – Major Drivers
  • Oracle Corporation.: Unveiling The Strategies Behind The Booming Cloud Services & Other Offerings! – Major Drivers
  • Aampe Attracts US$7.5M to Turn Apps’ Marketing Messaging into a Personalised Experience


Kokusai Electric IPO – Weaker Demand Than We Expected

By Mio Kato

  • Kokusai Electric announced its pricing range today, setting it rather tightly at ¥1,830-1,840. 
  • This is slightly below the initial indicative price of ¥1,890 pointing to modest demand. 
  • That is a rather more tepid response than we initially expected given that this is the first sizable offering in some time.

Kokusai Electric IPO – Not Wholly Convinced, One Needs to Look past the Cycle

By Sumeet Singh

  • KKR is looking to raise around US$730m via selling a stake in Kokusai Electric (6525 JP) (KE) in its Japan IPO.
  • KE main business activities consist of the manufacturing, sales and maintenance service of semiconductor manufacturing equipment.
  • In our previous notes we have looked at the company’s past performance and undertook a peer comparison. In this note, we talk about valuations.

New Huawei Tech-Powered Electric Car Launches With a Bang

By Caixin Global

  • A new electric car powered by Huawei’s autonomous driving technology has hit the market with a bang, attracting tens of thousands of orders in less than a month and giving the telecom-equipment giant a confidence boost as it pushes further into China’s highly competitive auto market.
  • As of Friday, more than 50,000 orders have been placed for the upgraded version of the Aito M7 SUV since it was launched on Sept. 12, said Richard Yu, chairman of Huawei’s smart car unit, in a social media post Saturday.
  • For each order, customers paid a non-refundable deposit of 5,000 yuan ($695), according to information provided by Aito — a premium electric-vehicle (EV) brand co-developed by Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. and automaker Seres Group Co. Ltd.

Rainforest Secures US$21.5M Funding, Reports 9x Growth in FY2022 Revenue

By e27

  • Singapore-based e-commerce aggregator Rainforest has raised US$21.5 million in a convertible note round from existing investors, including Canopy Tropics, Monks Hill Ventures, Insignia Venture Partners, and January Capital.
  • This brings the company’s total funding (debt and equity) to over US$100 million.
  • Rainforest plans to use the funds to acquire new e-commerce brands, improve the platform capabilities to accelerate channel expansion, and for geographical expansion and product development.

Peak XV Leads $12m Round in Startup that Simplifies Visa Applications

By Tech in Asia

  • For many who don’t hold powerful passports, securing a travel visa often comes with cumbersome paperwork, prolonged waiting periods, and substantial costs, thus posing a significant barrier to international travel.
  • One startup is bidding to solve this problem. Launched in 2021, Atlys allows users to apply for visas from anywhere in the world through its platform.
  • Aside from unifying the process in one place, the platform helps predict visa processing time while reducing rejection rates.

Jabil Inc.: How Strategic Focus on Key Tech Areas is Paving the Way for Future Success! – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • Jabil Inc. delivered a mixed set of results in its most recent quarter with revenues falling short of Wall Street expectations but above-par earnings.
  • The core margins increased by 40 basis points to 5%, accompanied by a 12% growth in earnings and a 13% growth in earnings per share.
  • Remarkably, Jabil generated over $1 billion in free cash flows, highlighting the resilience of their business model in the face of market fluctuations.

GoDaddy Inc.: How AI-Powered Innovations are Revolutionizing Their Customer Retention! – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • In the second quarter, GoDaddy delivered on-par revenues and below-par earnings while continuing to offer diverse solutions to a global customer base.
  • Their robust business health is evidenced by their acquisition of high-quality customers, strong retention rates, and improved attachment rates.
  • Customers are increasingly bundling new solutions, reflecting the company’s innovation and driving higher monetization through attachment and pricing while ensuring strong retention rates.

Motorola Solutions Inc.: Discover the Hidden Gems in the Products and SI Segment! – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • Motorola Solutions, Inc. managed to surpass the revenue and earnings expectations of Wall Street, showcasing robust growth and financial stability.
  • The company had a 12% surge in revenue, surpassing initial guidance, with double-digit growth evident across all segments, regions, and technologies.
  • This growth was primarily driven by increased earnings and improved working capital, though offset to some extent by higher cash taxes.

Oracle Corporation.: Unveiling The Strategies Behind The Booming Cloud Services & Other Offerings! – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • Oracle managed to exceed the revenue expectations as well as the earnings expectations of Wall Street, with total revenue at $12.4 billion, an 8% increase, excluding Cerner.
  • Total cloud services and license support revenue for the quarter amounted to $9.5 billion, up 12%, driven by strategic cloud applications, the Autonomous Database, and Gen2 Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI).
  • Infrastructure subscription revenues, including license support, reached $5.1 billion, up 14%, with Infrastructure Cloud services revenue growing by 64%.

Aampe Attracts US$7.5M to Turn Apps’ Marketing Messaging into a Personalised Experience

By e27

  • Aampe, an AI-native user engagement platform for consumer mobile apps, has secured a US$7.5 million pre-Series A funding round led by Matrix Partners India and Peak XV Partners.
  • This brings the US- and Singapore-based startup’s total funding raised to date to US$9.3 million.
  • The new capital will support product development and fuel growth.

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Daily Brief Industrials: Nws Holdings, Embraer SA, J&T Global Express and more

By | Daily Briefs, Industrials

In today’s briefing:

  • NWS (659 HK): Pre-Cons Done. Now, About That Final Divvie …
  • Embraer – ESG Report – Lucror Analytics
  • J&T Global Express Pre-IPO – Peer Comparison


NWS (659 HK): Pre-Cons Done. Now, About That Final Divvie …

By David Blennerhassett

  • Back on the 26 June, Chow Tai Fook (CTFE) made a pre-conditional voluntary Offer for New World (17 HK)‘s 60.88%-held NWS (659 HK) at HK$9.15/share, a 22.2% premium to undisturbed.
  • The Cheng-family-backed CTFE and connected parties held 45.24% of NWD, therefore the parent was effectively injecting ~US$2.75bn of cash into NWD for its NWS stake.
  • The pre-cons are now done, with a 13 October despatch date for the Composite Document. Technically, this could be wrapped up before NWS’ final dividend ex-date. That’s worth exploring further.

Embraer – ESG Report – Lucror Analytics

By Charles Macgregor

Lucror Analytics’ ESG Scores are based on a 3-tiered scale and are adjusted for Controversies (if applicable).
We assess Embraer’s ESG as “Adequate”, in line with its “Adequate” Environmental and Governance scores. The company has a “Strong” score for the Social pillar. Controversies are “Immaterial” and Disclosure is “Strong”.


J&T Global Express Pre-IPO – Peer Comparison

By Sumeet Singh

  • J&T Global Express, a global logistics service provider, is looking to raise about US$500m in its upcoming Hong Kong IPO.
  • As per Frost & Sullivan (F&S), the firm is the leading express delivery business in Southeast Asia, with a 22.5% market share as per 2022 parcel volume.
  • We have looked at the company’s past performance and its PHIP updates in our earlier notes. In this note we will undertake a peer comparison.

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Daily Brief Energy/Materials: Origin Energy, Euronav NV, Packaging Corporation of America and more

By | Daily Briefs, Energy & Materials Sector

In today’s briefing:

  • Origin/Brookfield: ACCC Rubber Stamped. Now Shareholders Will Have Their Say
  • Origin Energy (ORG AU): ACCC Approves, Shareholders Justifiably Want a Bump
  • CMB/Euronav: Mandatory Offer
  • Packaging Corporation of America: Uncovering the Strategies Behind Efficient Operations! – Major Drivers


Origin/Brookfield: ACCC Rubber Stamped. Now Shareholders Will Have Their Say

By David Blennerhassett

  • Brookfield Asset Management/MidOcean Energy’s tilt for Origin Energy (ORG AU), faced two major hurdles. 
  • The first was ACCC approval. Not just over competition issues, but also the perceived/apparent public benefit from Brookfield’s future commitment to renewable generation. ACCC has now cleared the transaction. 
  • The second is currying favour with shareholders, several of whom, including AustralianSuper (13.68% stake), reckon the Offer is substantially below long-term value. This needs a bump.

Origin Energy (ORG AU): ACCC Approves, Shareholders Justifiably Want a Bump

By Arun George

  • The ACCC has approved Brookfield/EIG’s proposed acquisition of Origin Energy (ORG AU). The Brookfield/EIG offer is A$5.78 and US$2.19 per share, worth A$8.83 at the last close. 
  • The bidders now face the challenge of convincing shareholders to accept the offer and avoid incurring ticking fees. The scheme booklet will be despatched in the coming weeks.
  • Several shareholders have justifiably argued that the offer is light. Our SoTP valuation is A$9.46 per share, 7.1% above the implied offer price of A$8.83.

CMB/Euronav: Mandatory Offer

By Jesus Rodriguez Aguilar

  • CMB and Frontline Ltd (FRO US) smoke the peace pipe: CMB will buy Frontline out of Euronav NV (EURN US) at $18.43/share (25% premium) and agree to Euronav selling 24 VLCCs to FRO.
  • After an EGM gives the green light, CMB will launch a mandatory $18.43/share cash offer for Euronav. The three-way transaction is fairly priced (1.0x P/NAV) for all players, including the Euronav minorities.
  • There shouldn’t be any antitrust issues. Spread is 4.02%/7.66% (gross/annualised assuming settlement by 30 April 2024). Recommendation is long and tender (there won’t be any squeeze-out).

Packaging Corporation of America: Uncovering the Strategies Behind Efficient Operations! – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • Packaging Corporation of America delivered a mixed set of results in its most recent results, with revenues falling short of Wall Street expectations but above-par earnings.
  • Packaging Corporation reported a net income of $203 million in the second quarter.
  • In this report, we have carried out a fundamental analysis of the historical financial statements of the company.

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Daily Brief Financials: Japan Post Bank, Kenedix Office Investment Co, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Rakuten Bank , Ruentex Development, Thai Credit Bank PCL, Bandhan Bank Ltd, King’s Town Bank, Country Garden Holdings Co, BlackRock Greater Europe Inves and more

By | Daily Briefs, Financials

In today’s briefing:

  • TOPIX October 2023 Rebalance: Round Trip Trade of US$20bn; Upweights Outperform Downweights
  • Kenedix Merger: Significant Passive Inflows Expected in Three Weeks
  • Make in India Bonds into the Global Bond Index: An Examination of Effects and Significances
  • Rakuten Bank IPO Lock-Up – Parent and Company Will Come Out of Lockup
  • Taiwan Construction: A Pair Trade Between CTCI and Ruentex Development
  • Thai Credit Bank Pre-IPO – The Positives – Loan Book Has Grown While Earnings Expanded
  • Quiddity Leaderboard BSE/​​​​SENSEX Dec 23: Bandhan Bank Could Underperform State Bank
  • King’s Town Bank – Net Profit +NTD697m Vs Fair Value Gains +NTD2,004m, Core Items All Worsening
  • Morning Views Asia: China Jinmao Holdings, Country Garden Holdings Co
  • BlackRock Greater Europe Investment Trust – Remaining selective in search for quality growth


TOPIX October 2023 Rebalance: Round Trip Trade of US$20bn; Upweights Outperform Downweights

By Brian Freitas

  • At the October rebalance, Free Float Weight (FFW) will be reduced on 284 stocks and increased on 458 stocks. 43 stocks will be removed from Phased Weight Reduction.
  • Estimated one-way turnover is 1.77% resulting in a one-way trade of ¥1.45tn. 364 stocks have over 4 days ADV to trade, 97 stocks have over 8 days ADV to trade.
  • Over the last 6 months, the stocks with inflows (>US$25m) have outperformed the stocks with outflows (>US$25m) with most of the outperformance coming in the last three months.

Kenedix Merger: Significant Passive Inflows Expected in Three Weeks

By Brian Freitas


Make in India Bonds into the Global Bond Index: An Examination of Effects and Significances

By Nimish Maheshwari

  • India’s inclusion in global bond indexes by JP Morgan is significant, but the expected foreign inflow is relatively small, not likely to impact exchange rates or interest rates significantly.
  • The bond inclusion won’t strengthen the Rupee against the Dollar due to limited foreign inflows. A slight reduction in interest rates is expected with JP Morgan’s inclusion.
  • Indian bonds offer attractive yields, but rising US bond yields and rupee depreciation could affect foreign investor interest. This development could lead to improved fiscal policies and Indian bond markets.

Rakuten Bank IPO Lock-Up – Parent and Company Will Come Out of Lockup

By Sumeet Singh

  • Rakuten Bank (5838 JP) (RB),  the online banking arm of Rakuten Group (4755 JP), raised around US$630m in its Japan IPO. Its IPO linked lockup will expire soon.
  • RB is the largest internet bank in Japan, by number of accounts. As of Jun 23, it had 14.0m deposit accounts with a total deposit base of JPY9.4tn.
  • In this note, we will talk about the lock-up dynamics and updates since our last note.

Taiwan Construction: A Pair Trade Between CTCI and Ruentex Development

By Douglas Kim

  • In this insight, we discuss a pair trade between CTCI (long) and Ruentex Development (short). 
  • We believe CTCI Corp is more attractive than Ruentex Development mainly due to different types of business mix and valuations. 
  • CTCI’s construction of refinery plants, waste water treatment, and power plants could thrive in higher oil price environment. Ruentex’s construction of residential and commercial buildings could experience lower demand. 

Thai Credit Bank Pre-IPO – The Positives – Loan Book Has Grown While Earnings Expanded

By Clarence Chu

  • Thai Credit Bank PCL (3674238Z TB) is looking to raise US$300m from its upcoming Thailand IPO via selling a mix of primary and secondary shares in its Thailand IPO.
  • TCB is a commercial bank that focuses on providing business loans to small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs), nano loans and micro credits to merchants, and home loans for individual customers.
  • In this note, we will talk about the positive aspects of the deal.

Quiddity Leaderboard BSE/​​​​SENSEX Dec 23: Bandhan Bank Could Underperform State Bank

By Janaghan Jeyakumar, CFA

  • In this insight, we take a look at the Potential ADDs/DELETEs for the BSE SENSEX, 100, and 200 Indices in the December 2023 Rebalance.
  • At present, I do not see any changes for the SENSEX index. For the BSE 100 and BSE 200 indices I see six and five changes respectively.
  • Some of these changes are different from those expected in my last insight. However, the changes expected in this insight will be my final expectations for the December 2023 Rebalance.

King’s Town Bank – Net Profit +NTD697m Vs Fair Value Gains +NTD2,004m, Core Items All Worsening

By Daniel Tabbush

  • Fair value gains are the single most important driver of good net profit at King’s Town Bank (2809 TT) in the most recent quarter.
  • Monthly revenue figures show strong 179% growth YoY in September, which we can see before any 3Q23 release.
  • Credit costs rose from 43bps to 83bps of loans from 1Q23 to 2Q23, which is a significant increase, may be more reflective of underlying operations.

Morning Views Asia: China Jinmao Holdings, Country Garden Holdings Co

By Charles Macgregor

Lucror Analytics Morning Views comprise our fundamental credit analysis, opinions and trade recommendations on high yield issuers in the region, based on key company-specific developments in the past 24 hours. Our Morning Views include a section with a brief market commentary, key market indicators and a macroeconomic and corporate event calendar.


BlackRock Greater Europe Investment Trust – Remaining selective in search for quality growth

By Edison Investment Research

BlackRock Greater Europe Investment Trust (BRGE) manager Stefan Gries seeks high-quality growth stocks that he can hold for the long term. The manager prides himself on being an ‘investor in businesses, not a trader in shares’ and stresses that his selective approach of focusing on the best businesses that are based in Europe means that investors do not need to have a positive view on the European economy to consider the trust. BRGE has a solid five- and 10-year record of outperformance versus the Europe ex-UK market, despite a difficult period in 2022 when growth stocks came under pressure in a rising interest rate environment. The trust also ranks favourably versus the averages of its peers in the AIC Europe sector over the last one, three, five and 10 years.


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Daily Brief Industrials: Nws Holdings, Embraer SA, J&T Global Express and more

By | Daily Briefs, Industrials

In today’s briefing:

  • NWS (659 HK): Pre-Cons Done. Now, About That Final Divvie …
  • Embraer – ESG Report – Lucror Analytics
  • J&T Global Express Pre-IPO – Peer Comparison


NWS (659 HK): Pre-Cons Done. Now, About That Final Divvie …

By David Blennerhassett

  • Back on the 26 June, Chow Tai Fook (CTFE) made a pre-conditional voluntary Offer for New World (17 HK)‘s 60.88%-held NWS (659 HK) at HK$9.15/share, a 22.2% premium to undisturbed.
  • The Cheng-family-backed CTFE and connected parties held 45.24% of NWD, therefore the parent was effectively injecting ~US$2.75bn of cash into NWD for its NWS stake.
  • The pre-cons are now done, with a 13 October despatch date for the Composite Document. Technically, this could be wrapped up before NWS’ final dividend ex-date. That’s worth exploring further.

Embraer – ESG Report – Lucror Analytics

By Charles Macgregor

Lucror Analytics’ ESG Scores are based on a 3-tiered scale and are adjusted for Controversies (if applicable).
We assess Embraer’s ESG as “Adequate”, in line with its “Adequate” Environmental and Governance scores. The company has a “Strong” score for the Social pillar. Controversies are “Immaterial” and Disclosure is “Strong”.


J&T Global Express Pre-IPO – Peer Comparison

By Sumeet Singh

  • J&T Global Express, a global logistics service provider, is looking to raise about US$500m in its upcoming Hong Kong IPO.
  • As per Frost & Sullivan (F&S), the firm is the leading express delivery business in Southeast Asia, with a 22.5% market share as per 2022 parcel volume.
  • We have looked at the company’s past performance and its PHIP updates in our earlier notes. In this note we will undertake a peer comparison.

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Daily Brief Health Care: Cosmecca Korea, Boston Scientific, Immix Biopharma Inc, Pixium Vision Sa and more

By | Daily Briefs, Healthcare

In today’s briefing:

  • Cosmecca Korea (241710 KS): Strong 2Q23 Result; Favorable Industry Tailwind to Enhance the Glow
  • Boston Scientific Corporation: Delving Into Double-Digit Growth – Must-Know Info for Every Investor! – Major Drivers
  • Immix Biopharma – A step toward delivering a practical CAR-T option
  • Pixium Vision – Safeguard proceedings underway


Cosmecca Korea (241710 KS): Strong 2Q23 Result; Favorable Industry Tailwind to Enhance the Glow

By Tina Banerjee

  • Cosmecca Korea (241710 KS) clocked revenue of KRW115.7B (up 15% YoY) and operating profit of KRW11.2B (up 265% YoY) in Q223. Operating profit margin expanded 670bps YoY to 9.7%.
  • Cosmecca is a key beneficiary of the increasing global demand for the affordable indie cosmetics brands. These brands are now outpacing the overall beauty and personal care industry.
  • Since reporting strong Q1 result in May, Cosmecca Korea shares are on fire. Cosmecca is expected to continue its growth momentum due to strong global demand for affordable cosmetics.

Boston Scientific Corporation: Delving Into Double-Digit Growth – Must-Know Info for Every Investor! – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • Boston Scientific Corporation delivered a solid result and managed an all-around beat last quarter.
  • In the second quarter, Boston Scientific witnessed a 12% growth in total company sales.
  • In the peripheral intervention segment, sales surged by 13% organically, while cardiology delivered impressive organic sales growth of 13%.

Immix Biopharma – A step toward delivering a practical CAR-T option

By Edison Investment Research

Immix has announced encouraging updated clinical data for NXC-201, a B cell maturation antigen (BCMA) targeting CAR-T therapy, which is being developed by majority-owned subsidiary Nexcella, in both multiple myeloma (MM) and amyloid light chain amyloidosis (ALA). The updated data for MM patients indicate an overall response rate (ORR) of 95%, notably higher than comparable CAR-T trials for MM, and for ALA show a 100% ORR in heavily pre-treated patients. The therapy has the potential to be the first outpatient CAR-T therapy, which would address many of the current CAR-T challenges with cost and access. With its recent $9.6m raise, we estimate Immix has an operating cash runway into Q424, from Q224 previously. Adjusting for the pro-forma cash of $22.2m, our valuation for Immix increases to $90.7m or $4.2/share (from $81.1m or $5.0/share).


Pixium Vision – Safeguard proceedings underway

By Edison Investment Research

Pixium Vision announced that safeguard proceedings have been opened by the Commercial Court of Paris. Despite the company’s best efforts in seeking financing options to extend its funding runway, it has determined that it may not be able to satisfy its financial obligations after the end of November 2023 without the protection of such proceedings. Given its liquidity risk and the absence of new financing to date, Pixium requested that the Commercial Court of Paris open safeguard proceedings. As the Court has now appointed other parties (SCP Abitbol & Rousselet and Selarl FHB) as co-administrators with supervisory responsibility for Pixium, we estimate the likelihood of any material residual value remaining attributable to the common equity holders of Pixium Vision following the court proceedings as highly speculative. As such, we are withdrawing our estimates and forecasts.


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Daily Brief Consumer: Li Auto , Starbucks Corp, China Tourism Group Duty Free, Devyani International , Lalatech Holdings Co Ltd, Heavenly Secrets Private Limited, Genuine Parts Co, Guoquan Food (Shanghai), Carmax Inc, Interpublic Group Of Companies and more

By | Consumer, Daily Briefs

In today’s briefing:

  • HSTECH Index Rebalance Preview: Round-Trip Trade of US$556m in December
  • Starbucks (SBUX): Another Monitor of China Consumption
  • China Tourism Group Duty Free (1880 HK):  Weak Golden Week Trends And Still Expensive
  • Devyani International Ltd- Forensic Analysis
  • Lalatech IPO: 1H2023 Numbers Point to Strong Improvement in Financials
  • Vertex Ventures Leads Indian D2C Beauty Startup’s $20m Series B
  • Genuine Parts Company: How Strategic Initiatives Are Creating Unprecedented Value! – Major Drivers
  • Pre-IPO Guoquan Food (Shanghai) – High Growth May Not Be Sustainable; Long Logic Doesn’t Hold Water
  • CarMax Inc.: Unveiling 4 Strategic Moves Propelling Future Success Amid Market Chaos! – Major Drivers
  • The Interpublic Group of Companies: Are The New Tech & AI-Driven Partnerships A Potential Growth Catalyst? – Major Drivers


HSTECH Index Rebalance Preview: Round-Trip Trade of US$556m in December

By Brian Freitas

  • With no stocks in inclusion or deletion zone, we do not expect any constituent changes for the Hang Seng TECH Index (HSTECH INDEX) in December.
  • Capping changes will result in a one-way turnover of 2.16% and that will result in a round-trip trade of US$556m.
  • The impact of capping changes has doubled over the last month and there will be more changes from now till the official capping is done on 28 November.

Starbucks (SBUX): Another Monitor of China Consumption

By Ming Lu

  • In June quarter Starbucks comparable store sales increased 46% YoY and reached to 80% of the level in the same period of 2021.
  • China revenue increase purely came from transaction, but not average ticket.
  • We believe Starbucks China data can be a good monitor of Chinese economy.

China Tourism Group Duty Free (1880 HK):  Weak Golden Week Trends And Still Expensive

By Steve Zhou, CFA

  • China Tourism Group Duty Free (1880 HK) announced preliminary results for 3Q23 which came in below market expectations.
  • Compared to the previous quarter 2Q23, sales declined by 1% q-o-q, while net profit margin declined from 10.4% in 2Q23 to 8.9% in 3Q23. 
  • The company (H-share) is trading at 26x 2023E PE and 23x 2024E PE, still expensive as visibility is low and derating continues. 

Devyani International Ltd- Forensic Analysis

By Nitin Mangal

  • Devyani International (DEVYANI IN) is one of the largest franchisee of Yum! Brands Inc (YUM US)  in India and operates brands like KFC, Pizza Hut and Costa Coffee, etc.
  • After a turbulent pandemic, the company has reported growth in topline and robust profitability in F22 and F23. But, these have been boosted by several one-off items.
  • The company also faces difficulty in generating positive FCFs while we also remain caution about the Nigerian Operations and the associated forex losses.

Lalatech IPO: 1H2023 Numbers Point to Strong Improvement in Financials

By Shifara Samsudeen, ACMA, CGMA

  • Lalatech has refiled for HKEx IPO and the company plans to raise around US$1bn through the IPO. This insight focuses on latest data points from the company’s new filing.
  • The company has disclosed results for 1H2023 which point to notable improvement in the company’s financials including an operating profit margin of around 21% for 1H2023.
  • There has been significant reduction in the company’s operating costs, merchant discounts and carrier incentives in particular, which have helped significant improve the company’s margins.

Vertex Ventures Leads Indian D2C Beauty Startup’s $20m Series B

By Tech in Asia

  • With rising urbanization and increased social media exposure to global beauty trends, India’s beauty and personal care market is now set to hit US$38 billion in value by 2028.
  • A big part of that growth has come from direct-to-consumer brands: in the past four to five years, over 80 of them have emerged, accompanied by a wave of investments.
  • One of these D2C players is Pilgrim, which recently raised US$20 million in a series B funding round led by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India. 

Genuine Parts Company: How Strategic Initiatives Are Creating Unprecedented Value! – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • Genuine Parts Company delivered mixed results for the previous quarter, with revenues below the analyst consensus.
  • The company reported total sales of $2.3 billion for the quarter, marking an impressive increase of $125 million.
  • In this report, we have carried out a fundamental analysis of the historical financial statements of the company.

Pre-IPO Guoquan Food (Shanghai) – High Growth May Not Be Sustainable; Long Logic Doesn’t Hold Water

By Xinyao (Criss) Wang

  • Guoquan’s model is easy to replicate.The so-called “moat” is all based on scale effects, without which Guoquan would lose competitiveness.This is why Guoquan has been striving to expand franchised stores.
  • With the increasing frequency of people dining out after China reopens, the high-speed expansion in 2020 seems unsustainable. To B model has less growth space/potential than To C model.
  • In such a fiercely competitive market, Guoquan’s long-term development logic is not solid. The current temporary improvement in financial performance is likely to be a flash in the pan.

CarMax Inc.: Unveiling 4 Strategic Moves Propelling Future Success Amid Market Chaos! – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • CarMax, Inc. delivered a mixed result in the recent quarter, with revenues above market expectations but failed to surpass the analyst consensus regarding earnings.
  • Despite ongoing challenges in the market, the company’s strategic actions have yielded positive outcomes and positioned it for future success.
  • In the quarter, CarMax’s diversified business model generated total sales of $7.1 billion, attributed to lower retail and wholesale volume and prices.

The Interpublic Group of Companies: Are The New Tech & AI-Driven Partnerships A Potential Growth Catalyst? – Major Drivers

By Baptista Research

  • Interpublic Group of Companies delivered a mixed set of results for the previous quarter with revenues below the analyst consensus.
  • The company reported a 1.7% decrease in organic revenue before billable expenses in the second quarter of the year, compared to the 7.9% organic growth in the same quarter of the previous year.
  • Despite these challenges, Interpublic Group of Companies observed growth in areas such as media offerings, healthcare, public relations, and experiential offerings.

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Daily Brief Thailand: Thai Credit Bank PCL and more

By | Daily Briefs, Thailand

In today’s briefing:

  • Thai Credit Bank Pre-IPO – The Positives – Loan Book Has Grown While Earnings Expanded


Thai Credit Bank Pre-IPO – The Positives – Loan Book Has Grown While Earnings Expanded

By Clarence Chu

  • Thai Credit Bank PCL (3674238Z TB) is looking to raise US$300m from its upcoming Thailand IPO via selling a mix of primary and secondary shares in its Thailand IPO.
  • TCB is a commercial bank that focuses on providing business loans to small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs), nano loans and micro credits to merchants, and home loans for individual customers.
  • In this note, we will talk about the positive aspects of the deal.

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Daily Brief Australia: Origin Energy and more

By | Australia, Daily Briefs

In today’s briefing:

  • Origin/Brookfield: ACCC Rubber Stamped. Now Shareholders Will Have Their Say
  • Origin Energy (ORG AU): ACCC Approves, Shareholders Justifiably Want a Bump


Origin/Brookfield: ACCC Rubber Stamped. Now Shareholders Will Have Their Say

By David Blennerhassett

  • Brookfield Asset Management/MidOcean Energy’s tilt for Origin Energy (ORG AU), faced two major hurdles. 
  • The first was ACCC approval. Not just over competition issues, but also the perceived/apparent public benefit from Brookfield’s future commitment to renewable generation. ACCC has now cleared the transaction. 
  • The second is currying favour with shareholders, several of whom, including AustralianSuper (13.68% stake), reckon the Offer is substantially below long-term value. This needs a bump.

Origin Energy (ORG AU): ACCC Approves, Shareholders Justifiably Want a Bump

By Arun George

  • The ACCC has approved Brookfield/EIG’s proposed acquisition of Origin Energy (ORG AU). The Brookfield/EIG offer is A$5.78 and US$2.19 per share, worth A$8.83 at the last close. 
  • The bidders now face the challenge of convincing shareholders to accept the offer and avoid incurring ticking fees. The scheme booklet will be despatched in the coming weeks.
  • Several shareholders have justifiably argued that the offer is light. Our SoTP valuation is A$9.46 per share, 7.1% above the implied offer price of A$8.83.

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