In today’s briefing:
- [Japan M&A] 99Soft MBO at 52% Premium Is Too Light But A Bump May Be Tough
- Hisense Home Appliances (921 HK): Global Index Deletion Coming Up
- Korean Government Confirms Visa-Free Entry of Group Tourists from China to South Korea
- Eternal (Zomato) Placement – Second Clean-Up by Antfin This Week, Will Lift the Overhang
- Lenskart Solutions Pre-IPO Tearsheet
- Soft99 Corp (4464 JP): The MBO Is Light but Likely Done
- JD.com Sets Sights on Europe as It Moves to Buy Ceconomy in $2.4 Billion Deal
- Altria Group: A Tale Of Growing Oral Tobacco Profits—Is on! the Secret Weapon for Future Growth?- Major Drivers
- Guming Holdings Lockup Expiry – US$1.5bn Lockup Expiry with Everyone Well in the Money
- Nhk Spring (5991 JP): Q1 FY03/26 flash update
[Japan M&A] 99Soft MBO at 52% Premium Is Too Light But A Bump May Be Tough
- Soft99 Corp (4464 JP) is the owner/operator of a set of ubiquitous brands in aftermarket autocare. Anything to do with washing, cleaning, etc.
- The company was founded 70 years ago, and the CEO is 54yrs old. Smells like succession planning.
- This deal is a nice premium, but it is too light. The operating assets with consistent growth and 20% OPMs are being sold at <0.9x book. That’s bad.
Hisense Home Appliances (921 HK): Global Index Deletion Coming Up
- The fall in Hisense Home Appliances Group (921 HK)‘s stock price over the last year puts it at risk of deletion from a global index in August.
- Short interest and positioning have picked up in the stock over the last couple of weeks and there should be short covering against the passive selling.
- The AH premium for Hisense Home Appliances Group could increase over the near-term as positioning continues ahead of the passive selling.
Korean Government Confirms Visa-Free Entry of Group Tourists from China to South Korea
- On 6 August, the Korean government confirmed visa-free entry of group tourists from China to South Korea.
- The new policy will allow the group tourists from China to visit South Korea on a visa-free basis from 29 September 2025 to end of June 2026.
- We provide a list of top 20 companies in Korea that are key beneficiaries of the no visa policy for group tour visitors from China to South Korea.
Eternal (Zomato) Placement – Second Clean-Up by Antfin This Week, Will Lift the Overhang
- Antfin (Netherlands) Holding B.V. is looking to raise up to US$612m via a cleanup of its remaining ~2% stake in Eternal (ETERNAL IN) .
- Antfin has been selling off parts of its ~14% stake in the firm since the IPO. The company last sold a 2% stake to raise upto US$400m in Aug 2024.
- In this note, we run the deal through our ECM framework and comment on deal dynamics.
Lenskart Solutions Pre-IPO Tearsheet
- Lenskart Solutions (0370405Z IN) is looking to raise about US$1bn in its upcoming India IPO. The deal will be run by Avendus, Axis, Citi, Kotak, MS and Intensive Fiscal Services.
- Lenskart Solutions Limited (LSL) is a technology-driven eyewear company with integrated operations spanning designing, manufacturing, branding and retailing of eyewear products.
- LSL’s largest market is India, and it was the largest seller of prescription eyeglasses in terms of volumes sold in India in FY25, according to the Redseer Report.
Soft99 Corp (4464 JP): The MBO Is Light but Likely Done
- Soft99 Corp (4464 JP) has recommended an MBO from Mr. Hideaki Tanaka (CEO) at JPY2,465, a 52.2% premium to the last close.
- While the offer represents an all-time high, it is light as it implies a P/B of 0.93x and is below the mid-point of the IFA DCF valuation range.
- Barring the emergence of an activist, a benign shareholder register and the irrevocables suggest that this is a done deal.
JD.com Sets Sights on Europe as It Moves to Buy Ceconomy in $2.4 Billion Deal
- JD.com is making its boldest push yet into the European market. On Thursday, the Chinese e commerce giant announced plans to acquire all outstanding shares in Germany’s CeconomyAG, the parent company of electronics retailers MediaMarkt and Saturn, in a cash offer valuing the deal at about 2.2 billion euros ($2.5 billion).
- Through its wholly owned subsidiary Jingdong Holding Germany GmbH, JD.com is offering 4.60 euros per share, a 43% premium to Ceconomy’s three month volume weighted average price and 23% above its July 23 close, before news of the potential takeover emerged.
- Shares rose to 4.41 euros Thursday, up 1.26%. Upon completion, Ceconomy would be privatized and delisted.
Altria Group: A Tale Of Growing Oral Tobacco Profits—Is on! the Secret Weapon for Future Growth?- Major Drivers
- Altria Group’s recent earnings reveals a mixed set of results that convey both the strengths and challenges faced by the company.
- In the second quarter of 2025, Altria continued to benefit from its strong core businesses, particularly within the oral tobacco product segment.
- On! nicotine pouches were a significant driver of this segment’s growth, reporting a 26.5% increase in volume and a retail share rise to 8.7%, reflecting a 0.7 percentage point gain year-over-year.
Guming Holdings Lockup Expiry – US$1.5bn Lockup Expiry with Everyone Well in the Money
- Guming Holdings (1364 HK) raised around US$233m in its Hong Kong IPO in Feb 2025. Its pre-IPO and cornerstone investors will be released from their lockup soon.
- After a hesitant start, the shares are now trading well above the listing price, leaving its pre-IPO and cornerstone investors well in the money.
- In this note, we will talk about the lock-up dynamics and updates since our last note.
Nhk Spring (5991 JP): Q1 FY03/26 flash update
- Revenue increased by 3.2% YoY, while operating profit and recurring profit declined by 9.2% and 37.4% YoY, respectively.
- Automotive Seating and Automotive Suspension Spring segments posted lower revenue, while DDS and Precision Springs & Components segments recorded growth.
- Global HDD production declined YoY, but demand for high-capacity HDDs for data centers increased, boosting HDD suspensions.
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