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China Archives | Page 133 of 199 | Smartkarma

China: Sunac China Holdings, Water Oasis, Huitongda, ABM Investama, Bilibili Inc, Sinopharm Group Co Ltd H, Qingdao Ainnovation Technology Group Co Ltd, Betta Pharmaceuticals, West China Cement and more

By | China, Daily Briefs

In today’s briefing:

  • Sunac China Placement – Previous Deal Didn’t Do Much, This Won’t Move the Needle Either
  • Water Oasis, Execution Makes It More Compelling
  • Huitongda IPO: Testing Times
  • Asia HY Monthly – 2021 In Review And 2022 Outlook – Lucror Analytics
  • Bilibili Makes a Late Entry into Livestreaming E-Commerce; Timing Is Not Just Right
  • Huitongda Network IPO Initiation: Clicks to Bricks
  • Sinopharm Group (1099 HK): Stable Pharma Distribution Business Despite Weak Demand for Vaccine
  • Qingdao AInnovation Technology Group Pre-IPO – Has Grown Fast, but Holds an Unproven Track Record
  • Pre-IPO Betta Pharmaceuticals – Lack of Staying Power
  • Morning Views Asia: Powerlong Commercial Management Holdings, Tata Motors ADR, West China Cement

Sunac China Placement – Previous Deal Didn’t Do Much, This Won’t Move the Needle Either

By Sumeet Singh

  • Sunac is looking to raise around US$500m via a top-up placement.
  • The company last raised cash in Nov 21 when it undertook a top-up placement worth US$500m and raised another US$270m via  selldown in Sunac Services.
  • That deal didn’t end up doing well and this deal as well won’t move the needle much, in terms of bringing down debt.

Water Oasis, Execution Makes It More Compelling

By Sameer Taneja

  • Water Oasis (1161 HK) trades at a 6x FY22 ( Sept end ) PE with 31% of its market capitalization in cash ( implying ex-cash 4x PE ). 
  • For FY21, Water Oasis (1161 HK) paid a 22 cent dividend implying a 12.43% dividend yield. We forecast a forward yield of 14%.
  • The company will continue to execute as it opens newer stores and beds down its M&A for a 15% CAGR revenue growth.

Huitongda IPO: Testing Times

By Oshadhi Kumarasiri

  • Alibaba backed B2B e-commerce business, Huitongda (1566215D CH) is looking to test the HK IPO market with its $500m IPO while Beijing is on the attack on Chinese new economy stocks.
  • The company’s focus on rural and lower tier markets sounds a promising prospect amidst the Chinese’s government’s push for common prosperity.
  • Nevertheless, we think that investors are more likely to focus on the barrage of regulatory assaults and the fragilities of Huitongda’s business model.

Asia HY Monthly – 2021 In Review And 2022 Outlook – Lucror Analytics

By Charles Macgregor

This month, we review the developments of 2021, and give our outlook for the year ahead. 

The Asia Monthly focuses on providing updates on recent events, information on new issues and spread movements, as well as summarising our top picks, and discussing specific areas of interest in the “In-Focus” section. The Asia Monthly is intended to broaden investors’ understanding of the Asian USD high-yield market.


Bilibili Makes a Late Entry into Livestreaming E-Commerce; Timing Is Not Just Right

By Shifara Samsudeen, ACMA, CGMA

  • Bilibili launched a shopping cart feature (Xiaohuangche) recently on its livestreaming platform which enables users to purchase goods while watching a live-stream.
  • This comes at a time; China’s common prosperity crackdown has set its eyes on livestreaming e-commerce.
  • Bilibili has been looking at ways to improve its monetisation to reduce losses, but we think the new initiative will likely add further pressure on deteriorating margins.

Huitongda Network IPO Initiation: Clicks to Bricks

By Arun George

  • Huitongda (1566215D CH) is a fast-growing commerce and service platform focused on China’s lower-tier retail market. It is pre-marketing an HKEx IPO to raise US$400-500 million.
  • The positives are a large addressable market, solid top-line growth and profitability. The key negative is the low margin profile which reflects a fragmented and competitive market. 
  • Overall, we think that the positives outweigh the negatives and this IPO is worth a closer look.   

Sinopharm Group (1099 HK): Stable Pharma Distribution Business Despite Weak Demand for Vaccine

By Tina Banerjee

  • With its nationwide distribution and delivery network, Sinopharm Group Co Ltd H (1099 HK) remains a beneficiary of increasing adoption of China’s VBP scheme for drug procurement.
  • Despite decreasing demand for Sinopharm’s COVID-19 vaccine, its pharmaceutical distribution business is expected to remain stable, driven by the steady recovery in China’s healthcare industry.
  • The company is successfully promoting fast-growing oncology products. Its strategic partnership with I-Mab (IMAB US) further strengthens competitive edge, as I-Mab has a robust pipeline for China market.

Qingdao AInnovation Technology Group Pre-IPO – Has Grown Fast, but Holds an Unproven Track Record

By Clarence Chu

  • Qingdao Ainnovation Technology Group Co Ltd (1853807D CH) is looking to raise up to US$200m in its Hong Kong IPO.
  • Qingdao AInnovation Technology Group is an AI solutions provider offering full-stack AI-based products and solutions. 
  • While revenue has grown since inception, margin improvement can’t be attributed solely to better cost controls. It also has an unproven track record and operates in a highly fragmented market. 

Pre-IPO Betta Pharmaceuticals – Lack of Staying Power

By Xinyao (Criss) Wang

  • If the R&D pipeline projects are not recognized by international capital,the main reason could be either the product development progress is lagging behind or the projects are not good enough.
  • The real innovative drugs would not be affected by generics that easily, and are to overturn the size of the old drug market.
  • The real risk of Betta would be revealed in the next few years as VBP promotes. So, we are conservative about the Company’s outlook at the current stage.

Morning Views Asia: Powerlong Commercial Management Holdings, Tata Motors ADR, West China Cement

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.


Before it’s here, it’s on Smartkarma

China: Ausnutria Dairy Corp, China Infrastructure & Logistics Group , China Merchants Bank H, China Longyuan Power Group Corp, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial (MUFG), Huitongda, Beijing Chunlizhengda Medical Instruments, Shimao Property Holdings and more

By | China, Daily Briefs

In today’s briefing:

  • Ausnutria (1717 HK): MGO Imminent As NDRC Approval Obtained
  • China Infrastructure & Logistics Group (1719 HK): Potential Unconditional MGO
  • China Merchants Bank – Accelerating Risk
  • China Longyuan (916 HK): The Trend Is Your Friend
  • 8 New $ Deals incl. MUFG, AgBank; Macro; Rating Changes; New Issues; Talking Heads; Top Gainers a…
  • Huitongda (汇通达) Pre-IPO – PHIP Updates and Competitive Landscape
  • Chunlizhengda Medical Instruments (1858.HK) – Conservative About the Outlook
  • Morning Views Asia: Guangzhou R&F Properties, Lippo Karawaci, Sawit Sumbermas Sarana

Ausnutria (1717 HK): MGO Imminent As NDRC Approval Obtained

By David Blennerhassett

  • China’s NDRC approval, a key condition to the Share Purchase Agreement, has been obtained.  SAMR clearance had previously been fulfilled, leaving MoC and SAFE approvals yet to be secured.
  • The turnout at Ausnutria Dairy Corp (1717 HK)‘s recent EGM would suggest there is a sufficient number of shares for the MGO to turn unconditional. 
  • Provided the Offer becomes unconditional, trading at a gross/annualised spread of 4.4%/22.1%, assuming late 1Q22 completion.

China Infrastructure & Logistics Group (1719 HK): Potential Unconditional MGO

By David Blennerhassett

  • After shares were halted midday on the 30 December pursuant to the Takeovers Code, China Infrastructure & Logistics Group (1719 HK) (“CILG”) has announced a possible MGO from Hubei Ports.
  • Hubei Ports has entered into a SPA with co-chairman Yan Zhi to acquire his 74.81% stake in CILG. Upon completion, this will trigger an unconditional MGO. The price is HK$1.15/share.
  • A key condition to the SPA is approval from SASAC of Wuhan, which is turn controls 82.8571% of Hubei Ports. This transaction is done.

China Merchants Bank – Accelerating Risk

By Thomas J. Monaco

  • Competitor Call Reveals Numerous Additional Risks Which Will Weigh On Results. 
  • No Clarity On Go Forward Core Bottom-Line, Especially Gains and Loss Provisions.
  • Reserve to NPLs Looks Overstated, as WMP and Securities Are Included In Loan Reserves.

China Longyuan (916 HK): The Trend Is Your Friend

By Osbert Tang, CFA

  • Nov and Dec wind generation continue to accelerate on a YoY basis, and it is also noteworthy that other renewable energy generation surged 346% MoM and 992% YoY in Dec.
  • SASAC’s latest guidance for the centrally-owned SOEs on installed renewable capacity target of over 50% of total by 2025 is another signal of strong government support on wind power.
  • Acceptance by Shenzhen Stock Exchange of Inner Mongolia PingZhuang Energy Resources (000780 CH) listing withdrawal application marks another step towards China Longyuan Power Group Corp (916 HK) return to A-share.

8 New $ Deals incl. MUFG, AgBank; Macro; Rating Changes; New Issues; Talking Heads; Top Gainers a…

By BondEvalue

US equity markets mixed with the S&P down 0.1% and the Nasdaq flat. Healthcare led the gainers, up 1% while Industrials led the losers, down 1.2%. US 10Y Treasury yields were down 1bp to 1.76%. European markets were lower with the DAX, CAC and FTSE down 1.1%, 1.4% and 0.5% respectively. Brazil’s Bovespa was down 0.8%. In the Middle East, UAE’s ADX was down 1% while Saudi TASI was up 0.9%. Asian markets have opened mixed – Shanghai and Nikkei were down 0.1% and 0.9% while HSI and STI were up 0.1% and 0.3%. US IG CDS spreads were 0.1bp tighter and HY CDS spreads widened 4.6bp. EU Main CDS spreads were 0.6bp wider and Crossover CDS spreads were 1.3bp wider. Asia ex-Japan CDS spreads widened 1.1bp.

Huitongda (汇通达) Pre-IPO – PHIP Updates and Competitive Landscape

By Clarence Chu

  • Huitongda (1566215D CH) is looking to raise up to US$500m in its upcoming Hong Kong IPO.
  • While the numbers from the growth of member stores look promising, it did not translate to stronger revenue from member stores and HTD did not give a clear explanation.
  • In this note, we look at PHIP updates and competitive landscape.

Chunlizhengda Medical Instruments (1858.HK) – Conservative About the Outlook

By Xinyao (Criss) Wang

  • Last year end, Beijing Chunlizhengda Medical Instruments (1858 HK) was listed on the SSE STAR Market, but fell on debut. 
  • The major concerns include performance slowdown, loss of bidding in centralized procurement, problematic sales model, poor gross profit margin, single products risk and weak innovation capability and international business.
  • Our view is that there is no immediate prospect of significant improvement. With too many uncertainties and concerns, we are conservative about Chunlizhengda’s outlook despite the large A/H premium.

Morning Views Asia: Guangzhou R&F Properties, Lippo Karawaci, Sawit Sumbermas Sarana

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.


Before it’s here, it’s on Smartkarma

China: China Mobile, Alibaba Group, Shanghai Junshi Bioscience, China Jinmao Holdings and more

By | China, Daily Briefs

In today’s briefing:

  • China Mobile (600941 CH): Potential Index Fast Entry
  • 1H22 Obex Research Long Portfolio
  • Shanghai Junshi Bioscience (1877.HK/688180.CH) – Behind the “break Up” with AstraZeneca
  • Morning Views Asia: China Jinmao Holdings, China SCE, Guangzhou R&F Properties

China Mobile (600941 CH): Potential Index Fast Entry

By Brian Freitas


1H22 Obex Research Long Portfolio

By Aaron Gabin

  • With half of Nasdaq stocks down 50% from the top, is further meltdown ahead?  Valuation compression is already larger than recent big growth selloffs.  
  • We like a balance of highest quality high growth (CRWD, SNOW, RBLX) and attractive relative valuations (PANW, NOW, BABA)
  • Amazon is poised for a big 2022 as 1 day Prime shipping reaccelerates growth, and price increases hike profits.

Shanghai Junshi Bioscience (1877.HK/688180.CH) – Behind the “break Up” with AstraZeneca

By Xinyao (Criss) Wang

  • Shanghai Junshi Bioscience Co. Ltd. (1877 HK) announced that it has terminated its PD-1 commercialization partnership with AstraZeneca. Lower-than-expected sales performance is seen as the key reason.
  • Junshi’s commercialization team is the weakest among the domestic Top Four.As the FDA’s attitude may have changed, the logic of exporting innovative domestic drugs to foreign markets could be shaken.
  • Given the poor financing environment,it’s challenging for Junshi to afford large investment in R&D and licensing deals by just relying on cash in hand and cashflow generating from commercialized products.

Morning Views Asia: China Jinmao Holdings, China SCE, Guangzhou R&F Properties

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.


Before it’s here, it’s on Smartkarma

China: Alibaba Group, Evergrande, Asia High Yield Bond Index and more

By | China, Daily Briefs

In today’s briefing:

  • Livestreaming E-Commerce – How the Sector Might Evolve After Viya Fine
  • China Evergrande Group – Razing Cain
  • Macro; Rating Changes; New Issues; Talking Heads; Top Gainers and Losers

Livestreaming E-Commerce – How the Sector Might Evolve After Viya Fine

By Jason Yap, CFA

  • Viya, China’s livestreaming queen, was fined RMB1.34 billion (USD210 billion) for tax evasion and related offences in 2019 and 2020 and her internet presence erased 
  • This exposes existing risks in the livestreaming sector including over-dependence on top KOLs, additional layer of costs and sector-specific regulatory crackdown
  • In this Insight, we examine the cost structure of livestreaming e-commerce and discuss the Viya incident’s implications on the livestreaming e-commerce sector

China Evergrande Group – Razing Cain

By Thomas J. Monaco

  • Bad To Worse:Under mainland China’s real estate development law, the government has the right to repossess idle land sold to any developer without compensation;
  • Demolition Man: Danzhou City is now in on the act, forcing China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) [Evergrande] to demolish 39 buildings for various violations; and
  • Banks To Eat This As Well: Without any compensation to Evergrande, mainland Chinese banks no doubt will finally be writing down their exposure on Evergrande’s now non-existent buildings.

Macro; Rating Changes; New Issues; Talking Heads; Top Gainers and Losers

By BondEvalue

US equity markets ended sharply lower, with the S&P and Nasdaq down 1.9% and 3.3% respectively. All sectors were in the red with Real Estate, IT and Communication Services down ~3% each. US 10Y Treasury yields continued to rise, by 7bp to 1.71%. The sharp moves in US equities and Treasuries come after the December’s FOMC minutes showed that the Fed may need to raise interest rates “sooner or at a faster pace” than officials had initially anticipated.   European markets were higher with the DAX, CAC and FTSE up 0.7%, 0.8% and 0.2% respectively. Brazil’s Bovespa was down 2.4%. In the Middle East, UAE’s ADX was flat while Saudi TASI was up 0.9%. Asian markets have opened broadly lower today – Shanghai, HSI and Nikkei were down 0.2%, 0.4% and 2.2% respectively while STI was up 0.6%. US IG CDS spreads widened 2.2bp and HY CDS spreads widened 10bp. EU Main CDS spreads were 0.7bp wider and Crossover CDS spreads were 3.2bp wider. Asia ex-Japan CDS spreads widened 0.4bp.

Before it’s here, it’s on Smartkarma

China: JL Mag Rare-Earth Co Ltd, Shanghai Medicilon Inc, Asia High Yield Bond Index, Porton Pharma Solutions, Tata Motors Ltd and more

By | China, Daily Briefs

In today’s briefing:

  • JL Mag Rare-Earth H-Share Listing: Valuation Insights
  • STAR50 Index Rebalance Preview (March 2022): What Will The Index Committee Do?
  • Macro; New Bond Issues; Rating Changes; Talking Heads; Top Gainers and Losers
  • Porton Pharma Solutions (300363.CH) – Not Easy to Get into the First Tier
  • Morning Views Asia: Evergrande, China South City, Future Retail Ltd, Tata Motors ADR

JL Mag Rare-Earth H-Share Listing: Valuation Insights

By Arun George

  • JL Mag Rare-Earth Co Ltd (300748 CH) is a leading producer of high-performance rare earth permanent magnets. It has launched an H-Share listing to raise $570 million at the mid-point. 
  • In JL Mag Rare-Earth Secondary Listing: Magnetic Moments, we stated that it has attractive fundamentals and the secondary listing is worth a closer look. 
  • Our valuation analysis suggests that the H-Share price range is fair. Pricing is expected on 17 January with an H-Share listing on 14 January.

STAR50 Index Rebalance Preview (March 2022): What Will The Index Committee Do?

By Brian Freitas

  • The main question, for yet another rebalance, is whether the index committee chooses a 6 month minimum listing history or increases it to 12 months in line with the methodology.
  • That decision will result in either 4 or 5 changes at the rebalance. The deletions remain the same, while there is only 1 inclusion common across both lists.
  • There is a fair bit to trade on the potential inclusions and exclusions and we expect the inclusions to outperform the deletions over the next couple of months.

Macro; New Bond Issues; Rating Changes; Talking Heads; Top Gainers and Losers

By BondEvalue

US equity markets ended lower on Friday, with the S&P and Nasdaq down 0.3% and 0.6% respectively. The indices ended 27% and 21% higher during the whole year 2021. US 10Y Treasury yields were flat at 1.51%. European markets were mixed with the DAX up 0.2% while CAC and FTSE were down 0.3% each. Brazil’s Bovespa was up 0.7%. In the Middle East, UAE’s ADX was up 0.5% and Saudi TASI ended 0.4% higher on Sunday. Asian markets have opened mixed – Shanghai and STI were up 0.6% and 0.3% while HSI and Nikkei were down 0.3% and 0.4% respectively. US IG CDS spreads tightened 0.2bp and HY CDS spreads tightened 1.7bp. EU Main CDS spreads were flat and Crossover CDS spreads were 0.2bp wider. Asia ex-Japan CDS spreads tightened 0.2bp.

Porton Pharma Solutions (300363.CH) – Not Easy to Get into the First Tier

By Xinyao (Criss) Wang

  • Porton made a successful turnaround and the CGT business layout is also in the right direction. The US$217 million new order would improve the certainties of its 2022 performance.
  • The concerns on potential deterioration of international relations and the broken logic in CXO sector also apply to Porton Pharma Solutions (300363 CH), which should be aware of by investors.
  • So, there is a long way to go for Porton to truly get into the first tier. It may not be a good buying point currently considering the high valuation.

Morning Views Asia: Evergrande, China South City, Future Retail Ltd, Tata Motors ADR

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.


Before it’s here, it’s on Smartkarma

China: Evergrande and more

By | China, Daily Briefs

In today’s briefing:

  • The Chinese Credit Chronicle: Stay Invested in China

The Chinese Credit Chronicle: Stay Invested in China

By Warut Promboon

  • We concluded that the worst in the Chinese property sector is behind us, but we do see a bumpy road ahead.
  • We lay down the reason to stay invested in Chinese credits and the challenges for investors to overcome.
  • We conclude our last research of 2021 with the lessons we have learned from covering Chinese credits over the years.

Before it’s here, it’s on Smartkarma

Coronavirus: Crisis and Opportunity in the China Market

Coronavirus: Crisis and Opportunity in China’s Economy

By | General
As shocking as the outbreak of the 2019-nCoV novel Coronavirus (or Wuhan virus) is, it has been less shocking to see it eclipse all other market concerns and dominate the conversation. Nothing gets the markets fidgety like a potentially major, potentially global health scare – it transcends industries, it doesn’t follow predictable patterns, and it doesn’t stop at borders.

While the situation is still developing, with more deaths and infected cases within China and a number of cases throughout the rest of the world, it’s hard to have a firm grasp of the actual impact. Nevertheless, Smartkarma Insight Providers have attempted to piece together some conclusions based on their specialist areas.

Dropping Prices

Vincent Fernando offers a view into China’s tech sector, with a look at 10 tech stocks that have seen large sell-offs since the virus news broke.

It’s no big surprise to see the impact on travel stocks like Trip.com and Travelsky Technology: with travel bans and strict restrictions in place, as well as a large segment of their clients being Chinese travelers, their shares dropped by 12 percent and 13 percent, respectively.

Less obvious might be the hit on stocks like cloud computing company Xunlei (19 percent) and image editing software maker Meitu (14 percent), but Fernando notes this is most probably due to broader market fears, with such stocks being collateral damage. 

Read Vincent Fernando’s full Insight: Coronavirus Casualties: China Tech’s Ten Biggest Losers

The sheer size of China’s market makes it impossible to not have ripples out to the global economy. For example, China is the largest consumer of commodities in the world, notes Gaius King. In a flash note on Smartkarma, he outlines how commodity prices have experienced a significant drop over the past few trading days. This includes iron ore (25 percent drop), zinc (9 percent), copper (11.6 percent), and nickel (11.3 percent). 

“In anticipation of lower economic growth, commodity prices have fallen and we expect prices could fall further as it becomes increasingly evident that the Coronavirus will eventually spread globally,” King writes.

Read Gaius King’s full Insight: Coronavirus & Commodities – What to Do?

Coronavirus: Crisis and Opportunity in the China Market

Most impressive of all – but perhaps expected – has been the Chinese government’s response to help shield the economy from the slowdown caused by virus concerns. On 2 February, the People’s Bank of China undertook a whopper of a liquidity injection, pouring RMB 1.2 trillion in the market (US$172 billion).

To put this into perspective, Michael J. Howell says the liquidity boost “represents in size roughly half the huge net liquidity injection undertaken by the US Fed since early September 2019, but taking place in just one day” – which, in turn, was one of the Fed’s biggest injections ever.

Read Michael J. Howell’s full Insight: China Hits Warp Speed …Risk On Again?

Howell notes that the lifeline should boost short-term business activity in China and around the world. Although it won’t do the yuan’s currency stability any favours, keeping up the momentum behind its economic growth might be more important to China, he adds.

Crisis = Opportunity

It’s not all bad news for everyone, however. Ming Lu points at internet companies, specifically ecommerce websites, which stand to gain from people staying indoors and doing their shopping online. 

“Since 23 January, when the Chinese government sealed Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus, people all over China began to snap up and hoard fast-moving consumer goods,” Lu writes.

Lu used ecommerce giant JD.com as an example case, and found that the website raised prices on several of its goods – in some cases, as high as 127 percent. “JD can surely defend themselves with the excuse that they just provide less discounts than before. However, they had kept those large discounts for a long time,” he says.

As a result, fast-moving consumer goods sold online due to virus fears could compensate for slowdown in other product categories in 1H2020. The crisis might even help pave the way for more mainstream drone delivery adoption, writes Fernando in a separate note.

Read Ming Lu’s full Insight: JD.com (JD): Raised Goods Prices Significantly After Wuhan Was Sealed as Epicenter of Coronavirus

And how about a startup that basically predicted the Wuhan virus spread within China and to major cities around the world? Blue Dot, a Canadian startup backed by Hong Kong magnate Li Ka-Shing, claims to model the spread of infectious diseases with the help of artificial intelligence. 

As Douglas Kim outlines in his Insight, the company first sounded the alarm about the Coronavirus on 31 December 2019, several days before official authorities. While Blue Dot is still private, it’s perhaps worth keeping an eye out for, especially since the new visibility the outbreak has given it.

Read Douglas Kim’s full Insight: Blue Dot: Li Ka-Shing Backed AI-Powered Startup Warned About Wuhan Virus Before WHO Warning

Another name that stands to benefit investors is, interestingly, in the very sector getting pummelled by travel bans and virus fears: online travel. Tongcheng-Elong is a Chinese online travel agency whose stock suffered, dropping 11 percent from 16 to 20 January. But the company’s long-term fundamentals are strong, Fernando says

It should “generate strong returns in the long run due to its combination of a high potential userbase paired with increasing OTA penetration in lower-tier cities throughout China, rapidly improving travel infrastructure & connectivity, and rising disposable incomes,” he writes. The same could be true for beleaguered Trip.com, he adds in a separate Insight. The company has announced refunds and assistance schemes for affected travelers, which should go a long way towards building customer loyalty and good will.

Read Vincent Fernando’s full Insights: TCEL: China’s New Virus Is Scary, But One Chart Shows How You Can ProfitHow Trip.com (TCOM US) Is Actually Getting Stronger During the Coronavirus Crisis

Lead image by Macau Photo Agency on Unsplash

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Chinese Pharmas Move to Claim a Piece of the Global $37b CRO Pie

Chinese Pharmas Move to Claim a Piece of the Global $37b CRO Pie

By | General

China’s tech sector still commands most of the attention when it comes to headlines – particularly in light of the ongoing trade war and the plight of industry figurehead Huawei. But the country’s pharmaceutical firms are now starting to make their mark. A number of IPOs are either kicking off or completing their arc, adding to China’s growing footprint in the CRO (contract research organisation) market.

CROs are companies that take on research and development (R&D) jobs for pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device firms. Their services include anything from clinical research and trials to commercialisation and drug development. Through CROs, large firms can reduce R&D costs and explore smaller markets with less risk.

CRO Boom

The model seems to be working. The global CRO market was worth US$37.1 billion in 2018, having grown at 8 percent over the last few years, according to research published by ReportLinker. A study by Grand View Research expects the market size to grow to US$54.7 billion by 2025.

Meanwhile, an earlier report by market research firm ISR forecast an increase in R&D spending of 15.5 percent for the period between 2015 and 2020, from US$262.9 billion to US$303.7 billion.

Out of around 1,100 companies worldwide, ten of them hold over 50 percent of global market share. They include names like IQVIA, Covance, and LabCorp.

Among them is China-based WuXi Apptec, which bills itself as Asia’s top pharmaceutical R&D service provider by total revenue. The Shanghai-based firm went public at the end of 2018, raising US$1 billion.

At the time, independent Insight Providers publishing on Smartkarma noted that WuXi was one of the companies who would benefit greatly from Big Pharma’s international shift towards outsourcing.

Now, a fresh batch of China-based CROs are gearing up for, or going through the final stages of their IPOs.

Pharma Hopefuls

Most notably, generic drug manufacturer Hansoh Pharmaceutical is about to list this week in Hong Kong. Valued at US$10.4 billion, the firm has amassed some impressive cornerstone investors, including Singapore’s GIC and China’s Hillhouse Capital and Boyu Capital.

Aequitas Research analyst Ke Yan was optimistic in a recent note on Smartkarma, particularly praising the company’s R&D capability as well as its ability to be first-to-market with its generic drugs.

Both Ke Yan and Arun George of Global Equity Research thought that Hansoh’s valuation was not on the cheap side, but felt the upside would be worth it on the low-to-mid-end of its price range. The discount “reflects the trade-offs between Hansoh historical solid financial performance and the mixed prospects for its drugs and a huge pre-IPO dividend,” George wrote.

The analysts were less keen on IPO hopefuls MabPharm and Viva Biotech, whose listings are currently at different stages of their lifecycle.

MabPharm focuses on R&D and production of cancer and autoimmune disease drugs. Ke Yan was left unimpressed by the company’s product pipeline, which faces intense competition from patent drugs and biosimilars.

In addition, the lack of specialised biotech investors in its shareholder line-up raised some flags. “It appears that the company is assembled by private equity to cash out,” the analyst wrote.

 

 

Viva Biotech, a CRO also based in Shanghai, last month raised US$194 million in what was Hong Kong’s most popular IPO before Hansoh came along. Viva’s unique twist is an “equity-for-service” business model, taking an equity stake in drug discovery startups in exchange for cash or its specialised services.

This factored into analysts’ views on Viva. Arun George was bearish pre-listing, noting the company’s guidance of a negative free cash flow in 2019, while Ke Yan warned that most of the company’s valuation depended on future earnings from investments into other companies.

China’s Biotech Moment

Overall, favourable policies and an abundance of capital will contribute to the development of more Chinese CROs, according to the report published on ReportLinker.

Following in the footsteps of international CROs like IQVIA, Parexel, and Charles River, rising Chinese players will likely look to grow their arsenal through acquisitions. WuXi, which has a 10 percent market share in China’s CRO market, announced last month it acquired US based Pharmapace, which specialises in biometric services for clinical trials.

“In the future, CRO companies will try to expand their service scope […] and they will establish a comprehensive service platform covering the entire drug development value chain by enriching their product portfolio constantly through investment in new technologies and new facilities,” the report states.

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Rare earth mining

China’s Rare Earths Threat Means Business for These Two Companies

By | General

Much of the trade war talk recently has concentrated on China’s threat to stop exporting rare earths to the US, as the tit-for-tat between the world’s two biggest economies marches on.

This has not only rattled the markets and prompted mass “rare earths” searches on Google; it’s also driven investor interest towards rare earth processing companies outside of China.

As things stand, China accounts for roughly 80 percent of global rare earth mineral supply and one-third of the world’s rare earth reserves. If the country decides to curb the supply of these minerals, it’s bad news for sectors running the gamut from automotive to consumer electronics.

But there are players around the world ready to seize the opportunity.

The Struggle for Light Rare Earths

In the event that China battens down the hatches, other countries and processing companies will try to pick up the slack. But it’s also important not to underestimate the significance of China’s contribution to the sector.

“Most investors completely misunderstand the potential predicament surrounding a [rare earth element] embargo,” writes Gaius King on Smartkarma. “The myriad causation effects it would inevitably have on modern life, and the impact on certain industries, such as non-Chinese made [electric vehicles] and wind turbines, would be calamitous.”

According to King, pundits tend to liken the abundance of elements like chromium and nickel to that of light rare earth elements (LREE) like yttrium, lanthanum, and neodymium. This leads many to think China has much less leverage in this regard, as global demand could be covered elsewhere.

Read the full Insight by Gaius King: PM8 – The Perfect Foil to a Xi LREE Embargo

However, given the market’s increasing needs for certain applications, such as the production of magnets for electric car motors, global LREE supply will have trouble keeping up in less than a decade, King warns.

He further points out that a potential moratorium on LREE supply from China lends to volatility for elements like neodymium, whose price jumped more than 33 percent last week as the market got more jittery.

From Angola to Australia

So what are the alternatives for the US if China makes good on its threat? Currently, the largest deposits can be found at three other places: Longonjo, Angola; Mount Weld, Australia; and Mountain Pass, California.

The first two locations are being exploited by two companies: Pensana Metals (PM8) and Lynas Corp respectively. The two deposits can “partially make up some additional supply outside of Chinese sources,” according to King.

Looking at PM8’s viability, King notes that the Longonjo deposit is approximately half the grade of Mount Weld and not as attractive financially. Still, the analyst believes the company is making a lot of the right moves, even though it won’t be ready to start selling concentrates until end of 2021, if not later.

Pensana (PM8) rare earth deposits

Lynas, the Australian company managing the Mount Weld deposit, seems to be best placed to capitalise on a Chinese LREEs curb. The company is capable of processing concentrates – the other two locations need to rely on Chinese state-operated companies for processing, which complicates things. For California’s Mountain Pass especially, tariffs in place by the Trump administration are already raising costs.

On 20 May, Lynas announced a joint venture with US-based Blue Line, with the aim of building a rare earths processing facility in Texas. The partnership will “see that US companies have continued access to rare-earth products by offering a US-based source,” according to the official announcement.

But while there are plans for the proposed plant to include LREEs, the initial focus would be on heavy rare earth elements.

In a note about Lynas, Travis Lundy is optimistic about the company based on the opportunities the continuing trade war presents and on the expectation of renewing its operating licence in Malaysia (where Lynas does rare earth refining) – which happened early this week.

Read the full Insight by Travis Lundy: Trump Trade Means Lynas Capex Easier

While the fruits of the joint venture with Blue Line will take a while to ripen, a non-Chinese player with the right capacity and expertise could be attractive to western and Japanese companies looking to step around the trade war fallout, Lundy believes.

In fact, Lynas can benefit from customers and investors who want it to succeed and grow as a viable alternative to Chinese firms.

Whichever way a full-on ban of rare earth supply by China goes, the mere possibility will likely make the markets think harder about the viability of alternative rare earth sources.

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Brief China: Dongzheng Auto Finance (东正汽车金融) IPO Review – Better off Buying the Parent and more

By | China

In this briefing:

  1. Dongzheng Auto Finance (东正汽车金融) IPO Review – Better off Buying the Parent
  2. CanSino Biologics (康希诺) IPO: Valuation Update (Part 3)

1. Dongzheng Auto Finance (东正汽车金融) IPO Review – Better off Buying the Parent

Dividend

Dongzheng Automotive Finance (2718 HK) is raising up to US$428m in its upcoming IPO. We have covered the background of the company in Dongzheng Auto Finance (东正汽车金融) Pre-IPO Review – Dependent on Dealership Network for Growth

In this insight, we will look into the company’s valuation, compare it to listed auto peers, and run the deal through our framework.

2. CanSino Biologics (康希诺) IPO: Valuation Update (Part 3)

Cansino%20pipeline%20feb%202019

CanSino is a China-based biotechnology company with a focus on vaccine development. In our previous insight (link to Part 1 and Part 2), we have discussed CanSino’s drug pipeline, the competitive landscape, and the valuation. 

As the company is starting pre-marketing, we will provide an updated valuation based on new information obtained from the approved application document. Our base case valuation for CanSino is USD 856 million on a pre-money basis. Majority of the rNPV based SOTP valuation still comes from its meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV2 and MCV4). Over the past few months, the company has completed Phase III for MCV4 and submitted NDA (new drug application) for MCV2 candidates.

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