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.

Event-Driven

<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/link-administration-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:970:1" rel="noopener">Link Administration Holdings (LNK AU)</a> announced that it received a non-binding indicative proposal from <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/carlyle-group-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33402:1" rel="noopener">Carlyle Group Inc (CG US)</a>. Carlyle will offer A$3.00 cash per share plus a pro-rata distribution of Link’s 42.8% shareholding in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/pexa-group-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:34716:1" rel="noopener">PEXA Group (PXA AU)</a> (worth A$2.38 per Link share at PEXA’s share price of A$16.23 on 4 November). The total consideration of A$5.38 per share is a 24.2% premium to the unaffected price of A$4.33 (on 4 November). Carlyle’s core Link (excluding PEXA stake) value of A$3.00 per share is a 53.8% premium to the implied core Link share price of A$1.95 per share (on 4 November). Link is no stranger to bids and received several bids in the recent past, including from Carlyle. Carlyle and Pacific Equity Partners made an indicative A$5.20 per share offer on 12 October 2020, which was later raised to A$5.40 on 26 October but withdrawn on 28 April 2021. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/ss-c-technologies-holdings" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3464:1" rel="noopener">SS&amp;C Technologies (SSNC US)</a> lobbed an A$5.65 per share offer on 7 December 2020 but withdrew the offer on 3 January 2021. Also, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/kkr-co-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:27333:1" rel="noopener">KKR &amp; Co Inc (KKR US)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/domain-holdings-australia-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:26033:1" rel="noopener">Domain Holdings Australia (DHG AU)</a> proposed to acquire PEXA for A$3.1 billion on 27 May 2021 which was declined in favour of a separate listing for PEXA.  Link’s Board has argued that the previous bids did not represent compelling value and sought to generate shareholder returns through the PEXA IPO and outlining ambitious FY26 targets in a November investor day. However, PEXA’s market cap of A$2.8 billion at last close is below KKR’s bid of A$3.1 billion. The lukewarm share price response (shares down -2% on the following day) to the investor day points to low confidence that the targets can be reached. Carlyle’s latest offer is subject to due diligence, execution of transaction documents and securing debt financing. Due diligence should be short due to Carlyle’s access to the due diligence materials through its previous bid.  <div class="content-highlight">The Board’s previous track record of knocking back bids has resulted in Link’s last close price of A$4.70 trading at a wide 14.5% gross spread to the indicative offer of A$5.38 per share. However, due to the Board’s failure to generate shareholder value and there no longer being a debate on PEXA valuation (as PEXA is now listed), the Board will face pressure to engage with Carlyle. We also think that Carlyle has room to sweeten its bid as its latest bid values core Link at A$3.00 per share, which is 21% below its previous offer which valued core Link at A$3.80 per share. </div>

Link Administration Holdings (LNK AU) announced that it received a non-binding indicative proposal from Carlyle Group Inc (CG US). Carlyle will offer A$3.00 cash per share plus a pro-rata distribution of Link’s 42.8% shareholding in PEXA Group (PXA AU) (worth A$2.38 per Link share at PEXA’s share price of A$16.23 on 4 November). The total consideration of A$5.38 per share is a 24.2% premium to the unaffected price of A$4.33 (on 4 November). Carlyle’s core Link (excluding PEXA stake) value of A$3.00 per share is a 53.8% premium to the implied core Link share price of A$1.95 per share (on 4 November). Link is no stranger to bids and received several bids in the recent past, including from Carlyle. Carlyle and Pacific Equity Partners made an indicative A$5.20 per share offer on 12 October 2020, which was later raised to A$5.40 on 26 October but withdrawn on 28 April 2021. SS&amp;C Technologies (SSNC US) lobbed an A$5.65 per share offer on 7 December 2020 but withdrew the offer on 3 January 2021. Also, KKR &amp; Co Inc (KKR US) and Domain Holdings Australia (DHG AU) proposed to acquire PEXA for A$3.1 billion on 27 May 2021 which was declined in favour of a separate listing for PEXA.  Link’s Board has argued that the previous bids did not represent compelling value and sought to generate shareholder returns through the PEXA IPO and outlining ambitious FY26 targets in a November investor day. However, PEXA’s market cap of A$2.8 billion at last close is below KKR’s bid of A$3.1 billion. The lukewarm share price response (shares down -2% on the following day) to the investor day points to low confidence that the targets can be reached. Carlyle’s latest offer is subject to due diligence, execution of transaction documents and securing debt financing. Due diligence should be short due to Carlyle’s access to the due diligence materials through its previous bid.  The Board’s previous track record of knocking back bids has resulted in Link’s last close price of A$4.70 trading at a wide 14.5% gross spread to the indicative offer of A$5.38 per share. However, due to the Board’s failure to generate shareholder value and there no longer being a debate on PEXA valuation (as PEXA is now listed), the Board will face pressure to engage with Carlyle. We also think that Carlyle has room to sweeten its bid as its latest bid values core Link at A$3.00 per share, which is 21% below its previous offer which valued core Link at A$3.80 per share. 

Equity Capital Markets

<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/abbisko-cayman-limited" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33511:1" rel="noopener">Abbisko Cayman (ABB HK)</a> is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative and differentiated small molecule oncology therapies. Abbisko has developed a pipeline of 14 candidates focused on oncology, including five candidates at the clinical stage The core products are ABSK091, a pan-FGFR inhibitor licensed from <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/astrazeneca-plc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:21824:1" rel="noopener">AstraZeneca PLC (AZN LN)</a> and ABSK011, an FGFR4 inhibitor. Abbisko is pre-marketing an HKEx IPO to raise $300 million, according to press reports. Abbisko has a credible management team with a commendable commercialisation track record. The three co-founders together have made contributions to several discovery programs, several of which led to successful commercialisation. Abbisko also has several blue-chip backers such as Lilly Asia Ventures, Sinopharm Capital, Qiming Venture Capital, GIC, Temasek, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/carlyle-group-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33402:1" rel="noopener">Carlyle Group Inc (CG US)</a>, Lake Bleu Capital and OrbiMed. <div class="content-highlight">While both core products are at an early stage of development, promising results from trials, management’s track record and the exceptional line-up of blue-chip backers suggest that the product candidates have the potential to succeed in a fiercely competitive market. Overall, we believe that Abbisko is worth a closer look. </div>

Abbisko Cayman (ABB HK) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative and differentiated small molecule oncology therapies. Abbisko has developed a pipeline of 14 candidates focused on oncology, including five candidates at the clinical stage The core products are ABSK091, a pan-FGFR inhibitor licensed from AstraZeneca PLC (AZN LN) and ABSK011, an FGFR4 inhibitor. Abbisko is pre-marketing an HKEx IPO to raise $300 million, according to press reports. Abbisko has a credible management team with a commendable commercialisation track record. The three co-founders together have made contributions to several discovery programs, several of which led to successful commercialisation. Abbisko also has several blue-chip backers such as Lilly Asia Ventures, Sinopharm Capital, Qiming Venture Capital, GIC, Temasek, Carlyle Group Inc (CG US), Lake Bleu Capital and OrbiMed. While both core products are at an early stage of development, promising results from trials, management’s track record and the exceptional line-up of blue-chip backers suggest that the product candidates have the potential to succeed in a fiercely competitive market. Overall, we believe that Abbisko is worth a closer look. 

Abbisko IPO: A Promising but Longer Term Prognosis

<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/ane-logistics" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:34119:1" rel="noopener">ANE Logistics (1292621D CH)</a> operates a leading express freight network in China’s less-than-truckload (LTL) market. ANE operated the largest express freight network in China as measured by annual total freight volume in each of 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, according to iResearch.ANE passed its HKEx listing committee hearing and will start pre-marketing to raise up to $500 million, according to press reports. ANE’s shareholders include Centurium, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/carlyle-group-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33402:1" rel="noopener">Carlyle Group Inc (CG US)</a>, CDH, CPE, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nws-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3350:1" rel="noopener">Nws Holdings (659 HK)</a>, Ping An, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/goldman-sachs-group-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:785:1" rel="noopener">Goldman Sachs Group (GS US)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/inner-mongolia-yili-indus-a" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3220:1" rel="noopener">Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group (A) (600887 CH)</a>.<div class="content-highlight">ANE is a play on China’s LTL market which offers substantial opportunities for market consolidation as the top 10 LTL operators in China had a market share of 5.7% by shipper spend in 2020, according to iResearch. As the largest (by freight volume), fastest-growing and most profitable player, ANE is well-positioned to be a market consolidator. On balance, we think that ANE’s fundamentals are solid and the IPO is worth a look for investors willing to brave the current weak sentiment on HKEx IPOs. </div>

ANE Logistics (1292621D CH) operates a leading express freight network in China’s less-than-truckload (LTL) market. ANE operated the largest express freight network in China as measured by annual total freight volume in each of 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, according to iResearch.ANE passed its HKEx listing committee hearing and will start pre-marketing to raise up to $500 million, according to press reports. ANE’s shareholders include Centurium, Carlyle Group Inc (CG US), CDH, CPE, Nws Holdings (659 HK), Ping An, Goldman Sachs Group (GS US) and Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group (A) (600887 CH).ANE is a play on China’s LTL market which offers substantial opportunities for market consolidation as the top 10 LTL operators in China had a market share of 5.7% by shipper spend in 2020, according to iResearch. As the largest (by freight volume), fastest-growing and most profitable player, ANE is well-positioned to be a market consolidator. On balance, we think that ANE’s fundamentals are solid and the IPO is worth a look for investors willing to brave the current weak sentiment on HKEx IPOs. 

ANE Logistics IPO Initiation: Home Delivery

Technical Analyst, Vermilion Research

Joe Jasper

Technical Analyst

Technical and Quantitative Research

Vermilion Research

Vermilion’s objective is to deliver timely, actionable, and unique technical research to professional investors through the application of our various technical indicators.

Our research strategists seek to highlight securities which we believe are at major inflection points, based on our various technical and quantitative indicators, and offer asymmetric risk/return profiles. Our unique research methodology, centered on relative strength, enables our strategists to deliver superior investment recommendations.

Our process begins by organizing the universe of actively traded stocks into discrete sectors, then into industry groups. We then apply our technical and quantitative tools to identify developing price trends. Once attractive trends are identified within a selected sector or group, we screen for individual stocks which we believe offer the best risk/reward profile. We provide a historical perspective that often reveals, through our long-term charts, how price patterns often repeat themselves over time.

Technical Analysis

The Russell 2000 (IWM) has been moving sideways for 7 months between $208 and $234.50, emblematic of the mixed market environment that we still find ourselves in. As long as $208 support holds we remain constructive on the overall market. On the plus side, conditions have been improving over the past two weeks -- not getting worse (more on this below). This increases the odds of a breakout above $234.50 on the IWM in the coming weeks or months, which would signal the start of a new broad-based bull market.Charts Highlighted: EEM, JD, NFLX, TSLA, YZCAY, BTU, HCC, ARCH, ARLP, CG, ARES, AB, CNS, VRTS, BSIG, VCTR, FDUS, PLD, REXR, FR, STAG, IIPR, TRNO, PSA, EXR, CUBE, LSI, and NSA

The Russell 2000 (IWM) has been moving sideways for 7 months between $208 and $234.50, emblematic of the mixed market environment that we still find ourselves in. As long as $208 support holds we remain constructive on the overall market. On the plus side, conditions have been improving over the past two weeks -- not getting worse (more on this below). This increases the odds of a breakout above $234.50 on the IWM in the coming weeks or months, which would signal the start of a new broad-based bull market.Charts Highlighted: EEM, JD, NFLX, TSLA, YZCAY, BTU, HCC, ARCH, ARLP, CG, ARES, AB, CNS, VRTS, BSIG, VCTR, FDUS, PLD, REXR, FR, STAG, IIPR, TRNO, PSA, EXR, CUBE, LSI, and NSA

Conditions Continue To Improve; EM Buy Signal; Growth Outperforming; Gold Vs. SPX Downtrend Intact

European Event-Driven Analyst

Jesus Rodriguez Aguilar

As per <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/philip-morris-lifts-bid-uks-vectura-165-pence-per-share-2021-08-08/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reuters</a>, on 8 August <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/philip-morris-international" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:13328:1" rel="noopener">Philip Morris International (PM US)</a> raised its bid for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/vectura-group-plc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22201:1" rel="noopener">Vectura (VEC LN)</a> to 165p/share, c. 6.5% higher than the last recommended 155p/share bid on 6 August by Murano Bidco (Carlyle).
The improved bid by Philip Morris is c. 2.5% above the TP in my last insight, and represents 17.3x EV/Fwd EBITDA. It reflects a full price, in my view. Vectura has strategic value for Philip Morris "PMI intends to operate Vectura as an autonomous business unit that will form the backbone of its inhaled therapeutics business".
My new TP is 165p, as I believe that the Board of Vectura will withdraw the recommendation issued for the last Carlyle offer and will recommend the last offer by Philip Morris, which is determined to win. On this basis, I reiterate long VEC LN. Gross spread is 0.6%, with limited downside, in my view.
Shares of Vectura may increase over the last offer by Philip Morris upon market opening on 9 August.

As per Reuters, on 8 August Philip Morris International (PM US) raised its bid for Vectura (VEC LN) to 165p/share, c. 6.5% higher than the last recommended 155p/share bid on 6 August by Murano Bidco (Carlyle).
The improved bid by Philip Morris is c. 2.5% above the TP in my last insight, and represents 17.3x EV/Fwd EBITDA. It reflects a full price, in my view. Vectura has strategic value for Philip Morris "PMI intends to operate Vectura as an autonomous business unit that will form the backbone of its inhaled therapeutics business".
My new TP is 165p, as I believe that the Board of Vectura will withdraw the recommendation issued for the last Carlyle offer and will recommend the last offer by Philip Morris, which is determined to win. On this basis, I reiterate long VEC LN. Gross spread is 0.6%, with limited downside, in my view.
Shares of Vectura may increase over the last offer by Philip Morris upon market opening on 9 August. 

United States

The Carlyle Group Inc. operates as a global investment firm. The Company manages investment vehicles that invests across four segments which includes corporate private equity, real assets, global credit, and investment solutions. Carlyle Group serves clients worldwide.

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Carlyle Group / (CG US)

Link Gets Another Offer from Carlyle

Link received another offer from Carlyle worth A$5.38 per share. Carlyle has room to sweeten its bid as its latest bid values core Link at A$3.00...

Arun George

Abbisko IPO: A Promising but Longer Term Prognosis

While both core products are at an early stage of development, promising trials, management’s track record and blue-chip backers suggest that the...

Arun George

ANE Logistics IPO Initiation: Home Delivery

ANE will start pre-marketing an HKEx IPO to raise up to $500 m. We think that ANE’s fundamentals are solid and the IPO is worth a look for...

Arun George

Conditions Continue To Improve; EM Buy Signal; Growth Outperforming; Gold Vs. SPX Downtrend Intact

Emerging markets (EEM) appear to be bottoming; one attractive buy candidate is JD.com (JD). We also highlight buy opportunities within Energy...

Vermilion Research

Race for Vectura Continues

New TP is 165p. I believe the Board of Vectura will withdraw the recommendation for last Carlyle offer and will recommend Philip Morris's....

Jesus Rodriguez Aguilar

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