In today’s briefing:
- Fonterra (FCG NZ) Inks Spin-Off With Lactalis
- Hang Seng Biotech Index Rebalance: 1 Add & 21 Deletes as Methodology Changes
- [XPeng Inc. (XPEV US, BUY, TP US$28) Review]: When Margin and Cash Is Right, Growth Is Secondary
- Airbnb Bets Big on AI But Can Its Smarter Tech Redefine Travel Planning & Customer Experience?
- Daegu Department Store: Property Value Is 10x Mkt Cap + Controlling Shareholder Is Selling
- RSB Retail India Limited Pre-IPO Tearsheet
- Lucror Analytics – Morning Views Asia
- McDonald’s Corporation: Can They Create New Beverage Growth Opportunities While Expanding Franchisees?
- DoorDash Expands Beyond Restaurants–Could Retail & Non-Food Be Its Next Big Growth Engine?
- Life Time Group: Expanding Profitability With 14% Surge in In-Center Revenue & AI Innovation!
Fonterra (FCG NZ) Inks Spin-Off With Lactalis
- Fonterra Co-Operative Group (FCG NZ) has agreed to sell its consumer and associated businesses to Lactalis for NZ$3.845bn, in line with prior market valuations upward of NZ$4bn for the “Mainland Group”.
- The ACCC previously commenced a formal review of Lactalis’ proposed acquisition on the 2nd May, and on the 10th July, announced it would not oppose the deal.
- There is potential for a further NZ$375mn increase from the inclusion of the Bega licences held by Fonterra’s Australian business – once a legal dispute is resolved.
Hang Seng Biotech Index Rebalance: 1 Add & 21 Deletes as Methodology Changes
- There is 1 add and 21 deletions for the Hang Seng Biotech Index (HSHKBIO Index) at the September rebalance.
- Estimated one-way turnover at the rebalance is 11.25% resulting in a round-trip trade of HK$1.77bn (US$226m).
- The deletes have underperformed the HSHKBIO Index since the start of the year with the gap opening up over the last two months following the announcement of the methodology change.
[XPeng Inc. (XPEV US, BUY, TP US$28) Review]: When Margin and Cash Is Right, Growth Is Secondary
- XPeng reported C2Q25 top line, non-GAAP operating loss and GAAP net loss (5.4%), 28% wider and 10% narrower than our estimate and (2.2%), 13% narrower and 49% narrower than consensus.
- Vehicle gross margin beat our estimate by 2.3ppt, consensus by 1.7ppt, and improved 14ppt YoY and 1.8% QoQ. XPEV guided for breakeven in C4Q25;
- We reiterate our TOP BUY on XPEV with TP unchanged.
Airbnb Bets Big on AI But Can Its Smarter Tech Redefine Travel Planning & Customer Experience?
- Airbnb’s second-quarter 2025 earnings call presented a mixed yet promising landscape for investment consideration.
- The company reported robust financial results, marked by a notable increase in key metrics such as bookings, revenue, and margin, which indicate strong demand recovery, particularly in global markets outside the U.S. Despite a challenging economic environment at the beginning of the quarter, travel demand saw an upturn, with significant contributions from expanded offerings in home-sharing and the evolving services and experiences sector.
- Baptista Research looks to evaluate the different factors that could influence the company’s price in the near future and attempts to carry out an independent valuation of the company using a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) methodology.
Daegu Department Store: Property Value Is 10x Mkt Cap + Controlling Shareholder Is Selling
- The controlling shareholder Koo Jeong-Mo and his affiliates will sell their 34.7% stake in Daegu Department Store through a public competitive bidding process.
- A recent valuation of the company’s real estate assets suggests a market valuation of nearly 700 billion won which is about 10x its market cap (72 billion won).
- Even if this real estate value is discounted by 50% that would represent nearly 350 billion won (386% higher than its market cap).
RSB Retail India Limited Pre-IPO Tearsheet
- RSB Retail India Limited (1633680D IN) is looking to raise US$171mn in its upcoming India IPO. The deal will be run by IIFL Capital, HDFC Bank, and Motilal Oswal.
- RSB Retail India (RSB) is a multi-format apparel retailer headquartered in Hyderabad. As of 31 March 2025, RSB operated 73 stores across 22 cities in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka.
- RSB does not produce its own goods, instead, it sources products from third-party suppliers and job-workers. It also sells merchandise under 13 in-house private labels.
Lucror Analytics – Morning Views Asia
- In today’s Morning Views publication we comment on developments of the following high yield issuers: Wynn Macau, AAC Technologies
- UST yields climbed yesterday, led by the front end, following hawkish comments from a few Fed officials and strong PMI data. The UST curve bear-flattened, with the yield on the 2Y UST rising 5 bps to 3.79%, while the yield on the 10Y UST increased 4 bps to 4.33%. Equities continued to retreat amid a rotation out of big tech stocks.
- The S&P 500 slipped for a fifth straight day, declining 0.4% to 6,370, while the Nasdaq fell 0.3% to 21,100.
McDonald’s Corporation: Can They Create New Beverage Growth Opportunities While Expanding Franchisees?
- In the second quarter of 2025, McDonald’s Corporation demonstrated a strategic approach to navigating a challenging economic landscape, showing both strengths and areas for potential improvement.
- The company’s global system-wide sales rose over 6% in constant currency, and global comparable sales increased nearly 4%.
- This performance was supported by menu innovations, effective marketing, and robust value offerings, which together fostered positive guest counts in a tough market environment.
DoorDash Expands Beyond Restaurants–Could Retail & Non-Food Be Its Next Big Growth Engine?
- DoorDash’s latest earnings for Q2 2025 presents a comprehensive view of the company’s current performance, strategic focuses, and the challenges it faces.
- Key highlights positively impacting DoorDash’s performance include the accelerated growth in its U.S. marketplace orders.
- This growth is attributed to improvements in product offerings, enhanced personalization, and the increased adoption of DashPass.
Life Time Group: Expanding Profitability With 14% Surge in In-Center Revenue & AI Innovation!
- Life Time Group Holdings Inc. exhibited a robust performance in the second quarter of 2025, presenting a mixed bag for potential investors to consider.
- On the positive side, the company reported a significant 14% increase in total revenue, reaching $761 million.
- This growth was fueled by a 14% rise in membership dues and enrollment fees alongside a comparable 14.4% boost in in-center revenue.
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