In today’s briefing:
- On Jardine Matheson’s Latest Buyback
- Square’s Level 2 Leverage Caps End Tomorrow — Fresh Near‑term Factor in the Square Vs Hynix Setup
- [Japan M&A] KKR and Founder to Take Engineer Staffing Agency Forum Engineering (7088) Private
- Forum Engineering (7088 JP): KKR’s Tender Offer at JPY1,710
- Weekly Update (Q, IAC, ANGI, LION, SNREY)
- A/H Premium Tracker (Week to 7 Nov 2025): Beautiful Skew Behaving Badly, CNOOC Better
- Company Halts Operations, Initiates Strategic Review with Potential 50% Upside to Net Cash by Year-End
- Kangji Medical (9997 HK): A Close Run Thing
- Generation Bio’s Strategic Review: Potential 50% Upside Amid Restructuring and Cash Management Challenges
On Jardine Matheson’s Latest Buyback
- On the 27th October, Jardine Matheson Holdings (JM SP) announced an Offer for 88.04%-held Mandarin Oriental International (MAND SP), after MAND concurrently announced the partial sale of OCB to Alibaba.
- MAND will pocket US$925mn from the sale. The privatisation will set Matheson back ~US$500mn. Alibaba is ostensibly funding MAND’s privatisation. And then some.
- Last week Matheson announced it will undertake a US$250mn buyback, which is expected to complete in 2026.
Square’s Level 2 Leverage Caps End Tomorrow — Fresh Near‑term Factor in the Square Vs Hynix Setup
- Square closed ₩290,000, missing all criteria; Level 2 removal effectively confirmed, with KRX disclosure expected ~8 p.m. Seoul, effective from tomorrow’s open.
- Square vs Hynix hinges on retail chase structurally, but near‑term Square’s underperformance worsened by asymmetric leverage shackles.
- Square’s Level 2 setup ends tomorrow; flows normalize, likely giving Square more juice vs Hynix. Key spot to watch from tomorrow’s open.
[Japan M&A] KKR and Founder to Take Engineer Staffing Agency Forum Engineering (7088) Private
- Today after the close, KKR announced a deal whereby they and founder OKUBO Izumi-san would take Forum Engineering Inc (7088 JP) private in an LBO.
- The process of this deal ticks most all of the “bad process” boxes but the price is pretty good.
- 52% is locked in. Insiders and cross-holders appear to own another 15-18%. This looks like a done deal to me. Money comes 30 December.
Forum Engineering (7088 JP): KKR’s Tender Offer at JPY1,710
- Forum Engineering Inc (7088 JP) has recommended a tender offer from KKR & Co (KKR US) at JPY1,710, a 32.6% premium to the last close price.
- The offer is arguably light due to a lack of an auction and is below the midpoint of the target IFA DCF valuation range.
- However, the offer is attractive compared to precedent transactions, peer multiples and represents an all-time high. The large number of cross-holders will help meet the required tendering rate.
Weekly Update (Q, IAC, ANGI, LION, SNREY)
Dupont (DD) spin off its electronics business, Qnity (Q), early this week.
DQnity will be one of the world’s largest pure-play electronic materials companies, with a portfolio spanning semiconductor fabrication materials and advanced electronics/interconnect solutions.
- Qnity’s Semiconductor Technologies division creates consumable products that are used during semiconductor manufacturing.
A/H Premium Tracker (Week to 7 Nov 2025): Beautiful Skew Behaving Badly, CNOOC Better
- Beautiful Skew still AWOL/MIA. The wider the spread, the worse the result.
- Large SOE H vs A generally strong. Strong net inflow into SOE Hs via SOUTHBOUND.
- The data tables below update on a daily basis in the Tools section of Smartkarma. The SOUTHBOUND Flow Monitor and AH Pairs Monitor are both there – free – for all SK readers.
Company Halts Operations, Initiates Strategic Review with Potential 50% Upside to Net Cash by Year-End
- The company has halted operations, laid off most staff, and initiated a strategic review with seven employees remaining.
- Insiders, owning over 20% of shares, are incentivized to unlock value through liquidation, reverse merger, or sale.
- A resolution from the strategic review is expected by year-end or early 2026, with ample margin of safety.
Kangji Medical (9997 HK): A Close Run Thing
- 6.95%. That’s the key number at yesterday’s Scheme Meeting for Hangzhou Kangji Medical Instrument Co., Ltd. (9997 HK).
- That’s still below the 10% blocking stake. But closer than the bankers and the market was anticipating.
- Arguably, the terms were therefore bang on. Last day of trading is today, with payment on the 16th December.
Generation Bio’s Strategic Review: Potential 50% Upside Amid Restructuring and Cash Management Challenges
- Generation Bio’s net cash is projected at $7.6/share, 50% above the current price, with limited ongoing cash burn.
- The company completed restructuring, retaining seven employees, and is considering liquidation, reverse merger, or sale options.
- Major shareholders include Atlas Venture Life Science (12.4%), T. Rowe Price (12.6%), Moderna (8.7%), Fidelity (6.9%), and BlackRock (5.1%).
💡 Before it’s here, it’s on Smartkarma
Sign Up for Free
The Smartkarma Preview Pass is your entry to the Independent Investment Research Network
- ✓ Unlimited Research Summaries
- ✓ Personalised Alerts
- ✓ Custom Watchlists
- ✓ Company Data and News
- ✓ Events & Webinars
