Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs, Douglas Research Advisory

Douglas Kim

Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>The history of Young Poong Group goes back nearly 73 years ago in 1949 when two young men Ki-ho Choi and Byeong-hee Jang founded Young Poong.</li>
<li>Young Poong Group and Korea Zinc could be separated from each other with the Choi family controlling Korea Zinc and Jang family controlling Young Poong and related affiliates.</li>
<li>The bullish case for Young Poong and Korea Zinc would be that once they are separated, there could be greater management transparency and ownership structure which could boost overall efficiency. </li>
</ul>


The history of Young Poong Group goes back nearly 73 years ago in 1949 when two young men Ki-ho Choi and Byeong-hee Jang founded Young Poong.
Young Poong Group and Korea Zinc could be separated from each other with the Choi family controlling Korea Zinc and Jang family controlling Young Poong and related affiliates.
The bullish case for Young Poong and Korea Zinc would be that once they are separated, there could be greater management transparency and ownership structure which could boost overall efficiency. 


A Separation of Korea Zinc Group & Young Poong Group by the Choi & Jang Families?

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One, Periscope Analytics

Brian Freitas

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One

<p>On 10 November 2020, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-holdings" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18524:1" rel="noopener">GS Holdings (078930 KS)</a> announced the merger of two of its retail units <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-retail-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3867:1" rel="noopener">GS Retail (007070 KS)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-home-shopping-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3916:1" rel="noopener">GS Home Shopping (028150 KS)</a>. The merger ratio was announced as 4.22 shares of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-retail-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3867:1" rel="noopener">GS Retail (007070 KS)</a> for 1 share of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-home-shopping-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3916:1" rel="noopener">GS Home Shopping (028150 KS)</a>.</p><p>Last evening, the KRX announced the deletion of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-home-shopping-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3916:1" rel="noopener">GS Home Shopping (028150 KS)</a> from the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/kosdaq-150-index" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:31077:1" rel="noopener">KOSDAQ 150 Index (KOSDQ150 INDEX)</a> and the inclusion of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/modetour-network-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:14818:1" rel="noopener">Modetour Network (080160 KS)</a> with the change becoming effective after the close of trading on 28 June.</p><p>We estimate passive <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/kosdaq-150-index" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:31077:1" rel="noopener">KOSDAQ 150 Index (KOSDQ150 INDEX)</a> trackers will need to sell 5 days of ADV on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-home-shopping-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3916:1" rel="noopener">GS Home Shopping (028150 KS)</a> while buying 1 day of ADV on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/modetour-network-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:14818:1" rel="noopener">Modetour Network (080160 KS)</a>. </p><p>KRX will increase the number of index shares for <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-retail-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3867:1" rel="noopener">GS Retail (007070 KS)</a> in the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/korea-stock-exchange-kospi-200-index" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:26021:1" rel="noopener">Korea Stock Exchange Kospi 200 Index (KOSPI2 INDEX)</a> at the same time and passive trackers will need to buy 0.7 days of ADV on the stock.</p><p>The <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-retail-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3867:1" rel="noopener">GS Retail (007070 KS)</a> / <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/gs-home-shopping-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3916:1" rel="noopener">GS Home Shopping (028150 KS)</a> spread will be interesting at the close on 28 June and there will be opportunities to unwind existing positions or to initiate new positions.</p>

On 10 November 2020, GS Holdings (078930 KS) announced the merger of two of its retail units GS Retail (007070 KS) and GS Home Shopping (028150 KS). The merger ratio was announced as 4.22 shares of GS Retail (007070 KS) for 1 share of GS Home Shopping (028150 KS).Last evening, the KRX announced the deletion of GS Home Shopping (028150 KS) from the KOSDAQ 150 Index (KOSDQ150 INDEX) and the inclusion of Modetour Network (080160 KS) with the change becoming effective after the close of trading on 28 June.We estimate passive KOSDAQ 150 Index (KOSDQ150 INDEX) trackers will need to sell 5 days of ADV on GS Home Shopping (028150 KS) while buying 1 day of ADV on Modetour Network (080160 KS). KRX will increase the number of index shares for GS Retail (007070 KS) in the Korea Stock Exchange Kospi 200 Index (KOSPI2 INDEX) at the same time and passive trackers will need to buy 0.7 days of ADV on the stock.The GS Retail (007070 KS) / GS Home Shopping (028150 KS) spread will be interesting at the close on 28 June and there will be opportunities to unwind existing positions or to initiate new positions.

KOSDAQ150 Index Rebalance: Modetour to Replace GS Home Shopping; GS Retail Weight Increase in KOSPI2

Cross Asset Strategy

<div class="content-highlight">
<p>On 28 May, Korea's National Pension Fund (NPS) announced its new <a href="https://news.mt.co.kr/mtview.php?no=2021052820172973220" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5 year plan</a> to reduce the asset allocation of Korean equities to 14.5% of total assets at the end of 2026, down from the current target of 16.8% of total assets at the end of 2021. NPS now is targeting overseas equity asset allocation targets to increase from 25.1% at the end of 2021 to 35.5% at the end of 2026.</p>
<p>NPS is targeting equity, fixed income and alternative assets to account for 50%, 35%, and 15% of total assets by the end of 2026. NPS has set an annual expected return of 5.1% for its total invested assets from 2021 to 2026.</p>
</div>


On 28 May, Korea's National Pension Fund (NPS) announced its new 5 year plan to reduce the asset allocation of Korean equities to 14.5% of total assets at the end of 2026, down from the current target of 16.8% of total assets at the end of 2021. NPS now is targeting overseas equity asset allocation targets to increase from 25.1% at the end of 2021 to 35.5% at the end of 2026.
NPS is targeting equity, fixed income and alternative assets to account for 50%, 35%, and 15% of total assets by the end of 2026. NPS has set an annual expected return of 5.1% for its total invested assets from 2021 to 2026.


NPS Announces A Reduction in Asset Allocation in Korean Equities to 14.5% of Assets by 2026

Korea / Special Sits, Pairs, Index Rebalancing, Clepsydra Capital

Sanghyun Park

Korea / Special Sits, Pairs, Index Rebalancing

Clepsydra Capital

Investigate special situations, pairs, and index rebalancing trades in Korea.

<p>We know that the Korea National Pension Service (NPS) is the nation's largest institutional investor, responsible for about 7% of the local equity market. But we often overlook the fact that it is also one of the largest institutional investors in the global coal industry.</p><p>According to the joint report by several environmental organizations, including Urgewald and Reclaim France, the NPS is, in fact, the world's 11th-largest investor in the coal industry. The NPS currently invests ₩12.7T in total on the coal-related bonds and equity, of which ₩4T are invested in equity.</p><p>There is news that the NPS will introduce a negative screening on the coal investment as early as the second half of this year.</p><p>The upcoming Fund Management Committee meeting, chaired by the Minister of Health and Welfare of South Korea, is scheduled for April 30. It is the highest-level investment decision-making body within the NPS. The negative screening is officially one of the proposals to be discussed in the April 30 meeting.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>The Korea NPS governance structure</strong></p><section class="figure"><figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/203/038/original/1.png?1619531424" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="203038"></figure></section><div class="content-caption">(Courtesy Korea NPS)</div><p>The chances are pretty high, given the current political mood under the left-winged administration. Coal will be a starter, likely followed by tobacco and mass destruction weapons soon.</p>

We know that the Korea National Pension Service (NPS) is the nation's largest institutional investor, responsible for about 7% of the local equity market. But we often overlook the fact that it is also one of the largest institutional investors in the global coal industry.According to the joint report by several environmental organizations, including Urgewald and Reclaim France, the NPS is, in fact, the world's 11th-largest investor in the coal industry. The NPS currently invests ₩12.7T in total on the coal-related bonds and equity, of which ₩4T are invested in equity.There is news that the NPS will introduce a negative screening on the coal investment as early as the second half of this year.The upcoming Fund Management Committee meeting, chaired by the Minister of Health and Welfare of South Korea, is scheduled for April 30. It is the highest-level investment decision-making body within the NPS. The negative screening is officially one of the proposals to be discussed in the April 30 meeting.The Korea NPS governance structure(Courtesy Korea NPS)The chances are pretty high, given the current political mood under the left-winged administration. Coal will be a starter, likely followed by tobacco and mass destruction weapons soon.

Shorting Alert Amid Korea NPS Negative Screening on Coal: KEPCO, GS, OCI, Kumho P, LG Int, & POSCO

<div class="content-highlight"><p>In this insight, we highlight the closing of the pricing gaps between the major Korean holdcos and opcos, especially with the upcoming end of the ban on the short selling of shares in Korea in May. In this insight, we highlight 26 pair trades that involve Korean holdcos and opcos.</p></div><p>Just a reminder that the ban on short selling of KOSPI 200 and KOSDAQ 150 included stocks will remain in place until May 2nd and investors will be able to resume their shorting on these 350 stocks starting on May 3rd. Once this ban on short selling of stocks ends, there could be more investors that may look to add to the holdco shares and short the opco shares (especially among the pairs where the holdco shares have underperformed the opco shares in the past year). However, some of these moves have already started to take place in the past few weeks, which could reduce the overall profits on the pair trades. </p><p>Traditionally, the pair trades involving Korean holdcos and opcos have been a trading strategy that many hedge funds have employed for many years. However, the ban on short selling of stocks in Korea have prevented many of these funds from employing these pair trade strategies. Once the ban ends, you will likely see these funds becoming more active in these trading methods once again. </p><div class="content-highlight">
<p>In the section below, we separated the pair trades into two different sections. The first table involves major opcos outperforming holdcos (regular and quasi) in the past year. Of the 26 pair trade strategies mentioned in this insight, this section I involves 19 of them (73% of total). The section II (which involve holdcos outperforming the opcos in the past year) involves 7 pair trade strategies (27% of total).</p>
<p>In other words, the opcos in general have vastly outperformed the holdcos in the past year, especially due to the ban on the short selling of stocks in Korea. Because the opcos tend to be the bigger company than the holdcos in terms of market cap, many fund managers (both active and passive) have tended to just invest in the opcos and pay less attention to the holdcos.  </p>
</div><p>Also, we described the holdcos as either regular or quasi. SK Telecom and Samsung C&amp;T would be examples of "quasi" holdcos whereas Orion Holdings and Hanjin Kal would be examples of regular holdcos. </p>

In this insight, we highlight the closing of the pricing gaps between the major Korean holdcos and opcos, especially with the upcoming end of the ban on the short selling of shares in Korea in May. In this insight, we highlight 26 pair trades that involve Korean holdcos and opcos.Just a reminder that the ban on short selling of KOSPI 200 and KOSDAQ 150 included stocks will remain in place until May 2nd and investors will be able to resume their shorting on these 350 stocks starting on May 3rd. Once this ban on short selling of stocks ends, there could be more investors that may look to add to the holdco shares and short the opco shares (especially among the pairs where the holdco shares have underperformed the opco shares in the past year). However, some of these moves have already started to take place in the past few weeks, which could reduce the overall profits on the pair trades. Traditionally, the pair trades involving Korean holdcos and opcos have been a trading strategy that many hedge funds have employed for many years. However, the ban on short selling of stocks in Korea have prevented many of these funds from employing these pair trade strategies. Once the ban ends, you will likely see these funds becoming more active in these trading methods once again. 
In the section below, we separated the pair trades into two different sections. The first table involves major opcos outperforming holdcos (regular and quasi) in the past year. Of the 26 pair trade strategies mentioned in this insight, this section I involves 19 of them (73% of total). The section II (which involve holdcos outperforming the opcos in the past year) involves 7 pair trade strategies (27% of total).
In other words, the opcos in general have vastly outperformed the holdcos in the past year, especially due to the ban on the short selling of stocks in Korea. Because the opcos tend to be the bigger company than the holdcos in terms of market cap, many fund managers (both active and passive) have tended to just invest in the opcos and pay less attention to the holdcos.  
Also, we described the holdcos as either regular or quasi. SK Telecom and Samsung C&amp;T would be examples of "quasi" holdcos whereas Orion Holdings and Hanjin Kal would be examples of regular holdcos. 

Closing the Gap: Korean Holdcos Vs. Opcos

South Korea

GS Holdings is a holding company, which operates subsidiaries including GS Caltex Oil, GS Power, GS Home Shopping, GS Retail, and GS Sports.

Price Gauge
52-week Range	0.00 - 0.00
Market Cap (USDm)	0.00
P/E	0.00
Dividend (Yield)	0.00

GS Holdings (078930 KS)

A Separation of Korea Zinc Group & Young Poong Group by the Choi & Jang Families?

Young Poong Group and Korea Zinc could be separated from each other with the Choi family controlling Korea Zinc and Jang family controlling Young...

Douglas Kim

KOSDAQ150 Index Rebalance: Modetour to Replace GS Home Shopping; GS Retail Weight Increase in KOSPI2

Modetour will replace GS Home Shopping in the KOSDAQ150 at the close on 28 June. GS Retail's shares in the KOSPI200 will be increased at the same...

Brian Freitas

NPS Announces A Reduction in Asset Allocation in Korean Equities to 14.5% of Assets by 2026

On 28 May, NPS announced its new 5 year plan to reduce the asset allocation of Korean equities to 14.5% of total assets at the end of 2026, down...

Douglas Kim

Shorting Alert Amid Korea NPS Negative Screening on Coal: KEPCO, GS, OCI, Kumho P, LG Int, & POSCO

This post looks at the NPS-owned coal-heavy local stocks that will likely be subject to the NPS negative screening on coal.

Sanghyun Park

Closing the Gap: Korean Holdcos Vs. Opcos

In this insight, we highlight the closing of the pricing gaps between the major Korean holdcos and opcos, especially with the upcoming end of the...

Douglas Kim

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)