Smartkarma Daily Briefs

• New futures launched on KRX Semis, PLUS K-Defense, and SOL Shipbuilding ETFs — the first sector-focused ETFs over 1T KRW to get futures.
• All three sectors dominate Korea’s market, already absorbing liquidity, and ETF futures could trigger delta-hedge arb flows, pushing liquidity even higher.
• All three indices are top-heavy, so flows in big-weight names can create spot-futures dislocations and alpha on individual spreads—especially during early MM liquidity and aggressive basis plays.

• STAR 50 Index is a tech-focused, blue-chip index in Mainland China which tracks the top 50 largest and most liquid names in the STAR market of the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
• STAR 100 index tracks the next 100 names (51st-150th ranks) and it represents the mid-cap segment of the STAR market.
• In this insight, we take a look at the potential ADDs/DELs for the STAR 50 and STAR 100 indices for the December 2025 index rebal event.

• MegaChem reported mixed financial results for 1H2025. 
• The Group’s 1HFY25 revenue declined slightly by 1.7% YoY to S$64.1 million, while gross profit improved 3.6% YoY to S$16.1 million.
• The Group’s overall gross margin increased from 23.8% in 1HFY24 to 25.1% in 1HFY25. 

• For the first time in more than two decades, GE Aerospace has reclaimed an all-time high, marking a milestone that investors had nearly written off.
• On September 17, 2025, shares of GE Aerospace closed at $292.97 after touching $294.74 intraday, breaking past the prior record set in August 2000.
• The stock’s rally has been nothing short of dramatic, climbing about 72% year-to-date and beating the S&P 500 by roughly 84 percentage points, largely on the back of surging commercial jet demand.

• Hanwha Aerospace has scaled into Asia’s top defense prime, with Land Systems (K9, Chunmoo, Redback) driving >30% OP margins and consolidated revenues compounding ~30% annually.
• A ₩31.7 tn orderbook (~4x sales) anchored in Poland, Australia, and Romania underpins multi-year growth visibility, with Ocean adding LNG/naval scale and Systems providing electronics integration.
• Hanwha trades in line with peers (~19× P/E, ~16× EV/EBITDA); upside hinges on backlog execution, while governance and ESG risks cap multiples.

• Copart, Inc.’s Q4 and full fiscal year 2025 results reflect a strong performance in certain areas while also highlighting challenges in others.
• Positive aspects include record figures in units sold, revenue, and operating profit.
• Overall, Copart showed an increase in global insurance volume by 4.5% and U.S. insurance volume by 4.2% over the fiscal year.

• In today’s Morning Views publication we comment on developments of the following high yield issuers: Adani Ports
• UST yields rose slightly yesterday led by the long-end, as the lower-than-expected initial jobless claims marginally pared market expectations for Fed easing. The UST curve bear-steepened, with the yield on the 2Y UST rising 1 bp to 3.56%, while that of the 10Y UST was up 2 bps at 4.11%.
• Equities rallied to fresh record highs, supported by the dovish interest-rate environment. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq climbed 0.5% and 0.9% to 6,632 and 22,471, respectively.

• In this edition: • ABN Amro Bank | NIBC up for sale again • Alfen | Compleo and Plug Me In exit UK EV charging market

Kier Group delivered solid FY25 results, with revenue up 3% y-o-y to £4.1bn and adjusted operating profit up 6% y-o-y to £159m, lifting the adjusted operating margin 10bp to 3.9%. Strong cash generation enabled Kier Group to report a FY25 net cash position of £204m, a dramatic improvement from the FY21 net debt of £582m. Outgoing CEO Andrew Davies has done an excellent job restoring Kier Group to health. The FY25 dividend of 7.2p is 38% above FY24’s 5.2p, and the ongoing £20m share buyback adds weight to a confirmed ‘recovered’ story. The £11.0bn end-2025 order book gives 91% visibility on FY26 revenues and 70% on FY27. Management reiterated its 4.0–4.5% margin target, supported by improving portfolio mix and disciplined bidding. On the FY25 call, management said early FY26 trading is slightly ahead of expectations.

• Crane NXT’s second quarter results for 2025 showed a balanced mix of growth and challenges, making it a complex scenario for investors to consider.
• The company’s sales growth reached approximately 9% year-overyear with an adjusted EPS of $0.97, signaling solid revenue performance, largely facilitated by strategic acquisitions and notable momentum in the currency business, reflected in a record high backlog.
• Moreover, the company’s achievement of a 120% free cash flow conversion indicates operational discipline, an essential factor for sustaining long-term growth.

• New futures launched on KRX Semis, PLUS K-Defense, and SOL Shipbuilding ETFs — the first sector-focused ETFs over 1T KRW to get futures.
• All three sectors dominate Korea’s market, already absorbing liquidity, and ETF futures could trigger delta-hedge arb flows, pushing liquidity even higher.
• All three indices are top-heavy, so flows in big-weight names can create spot-futures dislocations and alpha on individual spreads—especially during early MM liquidity and aggressive basis plays.

• STAR 50 Index is a tech-focused, blue-chip index in Mainland China which tracks the top 50 largest and most liquid names in the STAR market of the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
• STAR 100 index tracks the next 100 names (51st-150th ranks) and it represents the mid-cap segment of the STAR market.
• In this insight, we take a look at the potential ADDs/DELs for the STAR 50 and STAR 100 indices for the December 2025 index rebal event.

• MegaChem reported mixed financial results for 1H2025. 
• The Group’s 1HFY25 revenue declined slightly by 1.7% YoY to S$64.1 million, while gross profit improved 3.6% YoY to S$16.1 million.
• The Group’s overall gross margin increased from 23.8% in 1HFY24 to 25.1% in 1HFY25. 

• For the first time in more than two decades, GE Aerospace has reclaimed an all-time high, marking a milestone that investors had nearly written off.
• On September 17, 2025, shares of GE Aerospace closed at $292.97 after touching $294.74 intraday, breaking past the prior record set in August 2000.
• The stock’s rally has been nothing short of dramatic, climbing about 72% year-to-date and beating the S&P 500 by roughly 84 percentage points, largely on the back of surging commercial jet demand.

• Hanwha Aerospace has scaled into Asia’s top defense prime, with Land Systems (K9, Chunmoo, Redback) driving >30% OP margins and consolidated revenues compounding ~30% annually.
• A ₩31.7 tn orderbook (~4x sales) anchored in Poland, Australia, and Romania underpins multi-year growth visibility, with Ocean adding LNG/naval scale and Systems providing electronics integration.
• Hanwha trades in line with peers (~19× P/E, ~16× EV/EBITDA); upside hinges on backlog execution, while governance and ESG risks cap multiples.

• Copart, Inc.’s Q4 and full fiscal year 2025 results reflect a strong performance in certain areas while also highlighting challenges in others.
• Positive aspects include record figures in units sold, revenue, and operating profit.
• Overall, Copart showed an increase in global insurance volume by 4.5% and U.S. insurance volume by 4.2% over the fiscal year.

• In today’s Morning Views publication we comment on developments of the following high yield issuers: Adani Ports
• UST yields rose slightly yesterday led by the long-end, as the lower-than-expected initial jobless claims marginally pared market expectations for Fed easing. The UST curve bear-steepened, with the yield on the 2Y UST rising 1 bp to 3.56%, while that of the 10Y UST was up 2 bps at 4.11%.
• Equities rallied to fresh record highs, supported by the dovish interest-rate environment. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq climbed 0.5% and 0.9% to 6,632 and 22,471, respectively.

• In this edition: • ABN Amro Bank | NIBC up for sale again • Alfen | Compleo and Plug Me In exit UK EV charging market

Kier Group delivered solid FY25 results, with revenue up 3% y-o-y to £4.1bn and adjusted operating profit up 6% y-o-y to £159m, lifting the adjusted operating margin 10bp to 3.9%. Strong cash generation enabled Kier Group to report a FY25 net cash position of £204m, a dramatic improvement from the FY21 net debt of £582m. Outgoing CEO Andrew Davies has done an excellent job restoring Kier Group to health. The FY25 dividend of 7.2p is 38% above FY24’s 5.2p, and the ongoing £20m share buyback adds weight to a confirmed ‘recovered’ story. The £11.0bn end-2025 order book gives 91% visibility on FY26 revenues and 70% on FY27. Management reiterated its 4.0–4.5% margin target, supported by improving portfolio mix and disciplined bidding. On the FY25 call, management said early FY26 trading is slightly ahead of expectations.

• Crane NXT’s second quarter results for 2025 showed a balanced mix of growth and challenges, making it a complex scenario for investors to consider.
• The company’s sales growth reached approximately 9% year-overyear with an adjusted EPS of $0.97, signaling solid revenue performance, largely facilitated by strategic acquisitions and notable momentum in the currency business, reflected in a record high backlog.
• Moreover, the company’s achievement of a 120% free cash flow conversion indicates operational discipline, an essential factor for sustaining long-term growth.