IPOs and Catalysts/Events, Global Equity Research Ltd

Arun George

IPOs and Catalysts/Events

Uncompromised, Independent, Conflict-Free Research

Global Equity Research Ltd

Global Equity Research was started in 2017 by a group of experienced research professionals. It was founded on a passionate belief in the importance and the need for uncompromised, independent, conflict-free research. We aim to provide differentiated and actionable primary and bottom up fundamental research.

Equity Capital Markets

<p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/trip-com-group-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:180:1" rel="noopener">Trip.com (TCOM US)</a> is a leading one-stop travel platform that currently operates through four leading travel brands which are Ctrip, Qunar, Trip.com and Skyscanner. Trip.com passed its Hong Kong listing committee hearing and could raise up to $1-2 billion through a secondary listing, according to press reports. </p><p>Trip.com is braving choppy markets and waning investor enthusiasm on secondary listings/IPOs. The recent Hong Kong secondary listings of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/autohome-inc-adr" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20234:1" rel="noopener">Autohome Inc (Adr) (ATHM US)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/bilibili-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:26793:1" rel="noopener">Bilibili Inc (BILI US)</a> are trading 3% and 8% above their H-share listing price, respectively. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/baidu-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:179:1" rel="noopener">Baidu (BIDU US)</a> is trading -13% below its H-share listing price largely due to the fallout from the fire sale at Archegos Capital.   </p><div class="content-highlight"><p>Trip.com is a play on the expected reopening and recovery of travel in 2021 due to the global rollout of vaccines. In the post-pandemic world, Trip.com aims to cement its market share gains through strengthening its supply chain (such as short-distance travel), higher conversion via content investment (such as live streaming) and rising penetration in lower-tier cities (&gt;40% of new mobile app users in 2020 were from lower-tier cities). We think that Trip.com is an attractive play on travel recovery at the last close price. </p></div>

Trip.com (TCOM US) is a leading one-stop travel platform that currently operates through four leading travel brands which are Ctrip, Qunar, Trip.com and Skyscanner. Trip.com passed its Hong Kong listing committee hearing and could raise up to $1-2 billion through a secondary listing, according to press reports. Trip.com is braving choppy markets and waning investor enthusiasm on secondary listings/IPOs. The recent Hong Kong secondary listings of Autohome Inc (Adr) (ATHM US) and Bilibili Inc (BILI US) are trading 3% and 8% above their H-share listing price, respectively. Baidu (BIDU US) is trading -13% below its H-share listing price largely due to the fallout from the fire sale at Archegos Capital.   Trip.com is a play on the expected reopening and recovery of travel in 2021 due to the global rollout of vaccines. In the post-pandemic world, Trip.com aims to cement its market share gains through strengthening its supply chain (such as short-distance travel), higher conversion via content investment (such as live streaming) and rising penetration in lower-tier cities (&gt;40% of new mobile app users in 2020 were from lower-tier cities). We think that Trip.com is an attractive play on travel recovery at the last close price. 

Trip.com Secondary Listing: No Heads in the Clouds

Equity Analyst, LightStream Research

Shifara Samsudeen, ACMA, CGMA

Equity Analyst

Long-Short Analysis on Japan, Asia and the World

LightStream Research

LightStream conducts quantitatively rigorous and data-driven analysis with a focus on Japan and Asia.

We consistently cover the Tech, Consumer and Industrial sectors, and provide ECM and Events coverage more broadly.

We supplement traditional qualitative insights from company relationships with a robust quantitative foundation that examines as much historical data as is available.
We further refine the accuracy of our insights and calls through the use of alternative data to flesh out current trends, and through a valuation framework that emphasises non-superficial peer group selection and a proper attempt to understand the metrics and changes that have driven security valuations in the past.

Equity Bottom-Up

<p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tencent-music-entertainment" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:27255:1" rel="noopener">Tencent Music (TME US)</a>  announced on Sunday (28<sup>th</sup> March 2021) that its board of directors has authorised a share repurchase program to buyback US$1bn of its Class A ordinary shares in the form of American Depository Shares (ADS).</p><p>In our previous insights on TME, we discussed the company’s business model, segments, financials and valuation. Read our previous insights:</p><p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/tme-secondary-listing-monetisation-efforts-in-social-entertainment-should-boost-top-line-growth" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:48830" rel="noopener">TME Secondary Listing: Monetisation Efforts in Social Entertainment Should Boost Top Line Growth</a> </p><p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/tencent-music-secondary-unlikely-for-margins-to-expand-but-should-remain-stable-at-current-level" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:49034" rel="noopener">Tencent Music Secondary: Unlikely for Margins to Expand but Should Remain Stable at Current Level</a> </p><p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/tme-4q-results-strong-finish-to-2020-further-strengthens-partnerships-and-focus-on-new-initiatives" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:49558" rel="noopener">TME 4Q Results: Strong Finish to 2020, Further Strengthens Partnerships and Focus on New Initiatives</a> </p>

Tencent Music (TME US)  announced on Sunday (28th March 2021) that its board of directors has authorised a share repurchase program to buyback US$1bn of its Class A ordinary shares in the form of American Depository Shares (ADS).In our previous insights on TME, we discussed the company’s business model, segments, financials and valuation. Read our previous insights:TME Secondary Listing: Monetisation Efforts in Social Entertainment Should Boost Top Line Growth Tencent Music Secondary: Unlikely for Margins to Expand but Should Remain Stable at Current Level TME 4Q Results: Strong Finish to 2020, Further Strengthens Partnerships and Focus on New Initiatives 

Tencent Music Announces US$1bn Buyback After Shares Dip Double-Digit

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Sumeet Singh

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Event-Driven

<div>
<p>On 25th Mar 2021, we wrote about the knee jerk correction in some of the China ADRs that were yet to undertake a secondary listing as being unwarranted. Since then the ADRs have corrected further but now we know that the correction was more than just a reaction to SEC notice. In this note, we take a look at the recent updates and share price action and talk about its implications.</p>
</div>
<div>
<p>We have looked at the ADRs in the past, in our previous notes:</p>
</div>
<div>
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/china-adrs-secondary-listing-deep-dive-yin-and-yang" target="_blank" rel="noopener">China ADRs Secondary Listing Deep-Dive: Yin and Yang,</a> published in Feb 2020,  we looked at the background and rules around undertaking a secondary listing in Hong Kong and then came up with a short-list of companies that might undertake a secondary listing. </li>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/china-adrs-secondary-listing-covid-19-has-increased-the-tension-but-narrowed-the-short-list" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In China ADRs Secondary Listing: COVID-19 Has Increased the Tension but Narrowed the Short List</a> published in May 2020, we looked at the recent developments and provided an revised short-list</li>
<li>In <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/china-adrs-secondary-listing-holding-foreign-companies-accountable-act-i-m-coming-home" target="_blank" rel="noopener">China ADRs Secondary Listing - Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act - I’m Coming Home</a>, published in May 2020, we spoke about the implication of the act which had made its way through the senate.</li>
<li>In <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/china-adrs-secondary-listing-pipeline-looks-rich-have-three-years-to-move" target="_blank" rel="noopener">China ADRs Secondary Listing - Pipeline Looks Rich, Have Three Years to Move</a>, published in Feb 2021 we looked at the ADR pipeline and spoke about the updates from the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act becoming law and the updates at Hong Kong end as well. </li>
<li>In <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/china-adrs-sec-notice-instead-of-three-probably-have-four-years-till-2025-correction-overdone" target="_blank" rel="noopener">China ADRs - SEC Notice - Instead of Three, Probably Have Four Years till 2025 - Correction Overdone, </a> we spoke about the new SEC notice and its implications. </li>
</ul>
</div>


On 25th Mar 2021, we wrote about the knee jerk correction in some of the China ADRs that were yet to undertake a secondary listing as being unwarranted. Since then the ADRs have corrected further but now we know that the correction was more than just a reaction to SEC notice. In this note, we take a look at the recent updates and share price action and talk about its implications.


We have looked at the ADRs in the past, in our previous notes:




China ADRs Secondary Listing Deep-Dive: Yin and Yang, published in Feb 2020,  we looked at the background and rules around undertaking a secondary listing in Hong Kong and then came up with a short-list of companies that might undertake a secondary listing. 

In China ADRs Secondary Listing: COVID-19 Has Increased the Tension but Narrowed the Short List published in May 2020, we looked at the recent developments and provided an revised short-list
In China ADRs Secondary Listing - Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act - I’m Coming Home, published in May 2020, we spoke about the implication of the act which had made its way through the senate.
In China ADRs Secondary Listing - Pipeline Looks Rich, Have Three Years to Move, published in Feb 2021 we looked at the ADR pipeline and spoke about the updates from the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act becoming law and the updates at Hong Kong end as well. 
In China ADRs - SEC Notice - Instead of Three, Probably Have Four Years till 2025 - Correction Overdone,  we spoke about the new SEC notice and its implications. 



China ADRs- Blocks, Liquidation, Buyback - Implications

<div><p>Bilibili raised around US$3bn in its secondary listing in Hong Kong. </p></div><div>
<p>We have covered the background of the deal in our earlier notes:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/bilibili-secondary-listing-early-look-will-probably-be-more-like-jd-and-netease" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bilibili Secondary Listing Early Look - Will Probably Be More like JD and NetEase,</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/bilibili-secondary-listing-early-look-4q20-results-quick-note" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bilibili Secondary Listing Early Look - 4Q20 Results Quick Note and</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/bilibili-secondary-listing-volatile-but-should-be-hot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bilibili Secondary Listing - Volatile but Should Be Hot</a></li>
</ul>
</div><div><p>In this note, we'll talk about the updates since then.</p></div>

Bilibili raised around US$3bn in its secondary listing in Hong Kong. 
We have covered the background of the deal in our earlier notes:

Bilibili Secondary Listing Early Look - Will Probably Be More like JD and NetEase,
Bilibili Secondary Listing Early Look - 4Q20 Results Quick Note and
Bilibili Secondary Listing - Volatile but Should Be Hot

In this note, we'll talk about the updates since then.

Bilibili Secondary Trading - Hot Demand, Baba Takes Another Bite, but Still Set for a Weak Listing

Zhihu Technology / Equity Capital Markets

<div><p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/zhihu-technology-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:32185:1" rel="noopener">Zhihu Technology (ZH US)</a> is the largest Q&amp;A-inspired online community and one of the top five comprehensive online content communities in China, both in terms of average mobile MAUs and revenue in 2020, according to CIC.</p></div><div><p>Zhihu has priced its IPO at $9.50 per ADS which at the low-end of the IPO price range of $9.50-11.50 per ADS, according to press reports. At the final IPO price of $9.50 per share, Zhihu will have a market cap of $5.7 billion. Zhihu will also raise an additional $250 million in a concurrent private placement to <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alibaba-group-holding-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:787:1" rel="noopener">Alibaba Group (BABA US)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/jd-com-inc-adr" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:446:1" rel="noopener">JD.com Inc (ADR) (JD US)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tencent-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:26:1" rel="noopener">Tencent Holdings (700 HK)</a> and Lilith Games.</p></div><div><p>In <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/zhihu-ipo-initiation-question-time" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:48928" rel="noopener">Zhihu IPO Initiation: Question Time</a>, we opined that as the largest Q&amp;A-inspired online community, Zhihu is well-positioned to benefit from favourable industry trends. We concluded that Zhihu’s fundamentals are attractive. In <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/zhihu-ipo-valuation-insights" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:49410" rel="noopener">Zhihu IPO: Valuation Insights,</a> we noted that the IPO price range is attractive. </p></div><div><div><div class="content-highlight"><p>However, since the launch of the IPO, a brutal sell-off on Chinese ADRs was triggered by SEC adopting measures that would kick foreign companies off US stock exchanges if they do not comply with US auditing standards. Despite the subsequent de-rating of peers, Zhihu remains attractive at the IPO price. Updating for the final IPO net raise, our base-case DCF derived price target of $12.35 per ADS. As DCF-based target prices are subject to a wide range of variability, we present a sensitivity table to help investors gauge where target prices could head. Our DCF sensitivity analysis points to a meaningful upside based on securing a modest share of the addressable market. </p></div></div></div>

Zhihu Technology (ZH US) is the largest Q&amp;A-inspired online community and one of the top five comprehensive online content communities in China, both in terms of average mobile MAUs and revenue in 2020, according to CIC.Zhihu has priced its IPO at $9.50 per ADS which at the low-end of the IPO price range of $9.50-11.50 per ADS, according to press reports. At the final IPO price of $9.50 per share, Zhihu will have a market cap of $5.7 billion. Zhihu will also raise an additional $250 million in a concurrent private placement to Alibaba Group (BABA US), JD.com Inc (ADR) (JD US), Tencent Holdings (700 HK) and Lilith Games.In Zhihu IPO Initiation: Question Time, we opined that as the largest Q&amp;A-inspired online community, Zhihu is well-positioned to benefit from favourable industry trends. We concluded that Zhihu’s fundamentals are attractive. In Zhihu IPO: Valuation Insights, we noted that the IPO price range is attractive. However, since the launch of the IPO, a brutal sell-off on Chinese ADRs was triggered by SEC adopting measures that would kick foreign companies off US stock exchanges if they do not comply with US auditing standards. Despite the subsequent de-rating of peers, Zhihu remains attractive at the IPO price. Updating for the final IPO net raise, our base-case DCF derived price target of $12.35 per ADS. As DCF-based target prices are subject to a wide range of variability, we present a sensitivity table to help investors gauge where target prices could head. Our DCF sensitivity analysis points to a meaningful upside based on securing a modest share of the addressable market. 

China

Bilibili Inc. provides online entertainment services. The Company offers a platform that covers a wide array of genres and media formats, including videos, live broadcasting, mobile games, animation, and comics. Bilibili serves customers in China.

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Bilibili (BILI US)

Trip.com Secondary Listing: No Heads in the Clouds

Trip.com passed its HKEx listing hearing to raise up to $1-2bn through a secondary listing. We think that Trip.com is an attractive play on travel...

Arun George

Tencent Music Announces US$1bn Buyback After Shares Dip Double-Digit

We would recommend making an entry at the current multiple as we believe the announced buyback will likely help share price to move up in the short...

Shifara Samsudeen, ACMA, CGMA

China ADRs- Blocks, Liquidation, Buyback - Implications

On 25th Mar 2021, we wrote about the knee jerk correction in some of the China ADRs. Since then the ADRs have corrected further. In this note, we...

Sumeet Singh

Bilibili Secondary Trading - Hot Demand, Baba Takes Another Bite, but Still Set for a Weak Listing

Bilibili raised around US$3bn in its secondary listing in Hong Kong. In this note, we'll talk about the updates since our previous note.

Sumeet Singh

Zhihu IPO: Trading Debut

Zhihu has priced its IPO at $9.50 per ADS which at the low-end of the IPO price range, according to press reports. Despite the recent de-rating of...

Arun George

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