Equity Analyst, LightStream Research

Oshadhi Kumarasiri

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

Best World International / Equity Bottom-Up

<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/best-world-international-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:4600:1" rel="noopener">Best World International (BEST SP)</a> is a Singapore based manufacturer, distributor and a retailor of skincare, personal care and nutritional supplement brands such as Avance, Optrimax, Foodphilo, Margaret Dabbs, DR’s Secret, Miraglo, PentaLab and Bare Feet.
SGX suspended trading of Best World shares in May 2019, following a news article and a short seller report alleging the company of fabricating sales of its China operations. SGX also called for an independent review and it was completed in July last year. The company is currently cooperating with SGX to resolve the issue but the timeline for a possible lifting of the trading suspension remains unclear.
It’s been two years since the initial allegation, yet there are too many unknown variables. At bare minimum, we expect Best World’s robust revenue and OP growth to get hampered over the next few years as the company is forced to do a number of changes to the business model, internal controls and corporate governance measures.

Best World International (BEST SP) is a Singapore based manufacturer, distributor and a retailor of skincare, personal care and nutritional supplement brands such as Avance, Optrimax, Foodphilo, Margaret Dabbs, DR’s Secret, Miraglo, PentaLab and Bare Feet.
SGX suspended trading of Best World shares in May 2019, following a news article and a short seller report alleging the company of fabricating sales of its China operations. SGX also called for an independent review and it was completed in July last year. The company is currently cooperating with SGX to resolve the issue but the timeline for a possible lifting of the trading suspension remains unclear.
It’s been two years since the initial allegation, yet there are too many unknown variables. At bare minimum, we expect Best World’s robust revenue and OP growth to get hampered over the next few years as the company is forced to do a number of changes to the business model, internal controls and corporate governance measures.

Best World International: The End Is Not Yet In Sight

Asia Consumer Research, Investory

Devi Subhakesan

Asia Consumer Research

ASIA CONSUMER: INSIGHTS AND INVESTMENT IDEAS

Investory

Investory is a Singapore-based boutique independent equity research firm founded in January 2017 with a primary focus on consumption themes across Asia-Pacific.

We aim to generate investible ideas based on consumption trends and outlook. We screen our ideas on several parameters - product potential, long-term growth and management commitment being the most critical.  We follow a fundamental analysis approach in our stock selection process and are not restricted by market cap.

We aspire to grow into a leading source of unbiased research, free of conflict of interest, for investors yearning for independent and disciplined analysis. 

We also undertake bespoke research mandates to support our Institutional clients’ investment needs.

Our team comprises of professionals with extensive experience in the Asian equity markets, in areas ranging from research, servicing institutional clients and investment management.

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

Emerging Asia - notably China and India -  is witnessing a  steady expansion in the Male grooming sector as men's habits around personal care is shifting - led by a confluence of social, economic and compelling demographic factors. Expect this trend to gather more momentum as image-conscious young men adopt a wider array of personal care products. Skincare products that address specific needs/concerns of male customers will drive the early stage of segment growth; light cosmetics are picking up demand too. Companies that are quick to identify and address the demand with male-specific products/brands stand to gain from early mover advantage given male customers, reportedly, are far more brand loyal compared to female counterparts.
What is original in this report? We discuss the social, economic and compelling demographic factors driving the shift and growth in the Male grooming sector in China and India. We look at the emerging trends across segments and in both the markets to arrive at a pecking order in terms of investment potential. We have scanned the personal care and cosmetics products landscape to shortlist brands and companies that offer a male-specific product range. A brief on select companies - private and listed -  are presented for further investment analysis and evaluation.

Emerging Asia - notably China and India -  is witnessing a  steady expansion in the Male grooming sector as men's habits around personal care is shifting - led by a confluence of social, economic and compelling demographic factors. Expect this trend to gather more momentum as image-conscious young men adopt a wider array of personal care products. Skincare products that address specific needs/concerns of male customers will drive the early stage of segment growth; light cosmetics are picking up demand too. Companies that are quick to identify and address the demand with male-specific products/brands stand to gain from early mover advantage given male customers, reportedly, are far more brand loyal compared to female counterparts.
What is original in this report? We discuss the social, economic and compelling demographic factors driving the shift and growth in the Male grooming sector in China and India. We look at the emerging trends across segments and in both the markets to arrive at a pecking order in terms of investment potential. We have scanned the personal care and cosmetics products landscape to shortlist brands and companies that offer a male-specific product range. A brief on select companies - private and listed -  are presented for further investment analysis and evaluation. 

Male Grooming in Asia: Blooming Prospects. Skincare to Drive Growth

Expert on Japan Retail and Consumer Markets, JapanConsuming

Michael Causton

Expert on Japan Retail and Consumer Markets

Real Insight on Japanese Consumer Markets

JapanConsuming

JapanConsuming is a specialist research firm producing intelligence on Japanese retail and consumer markets. Founded in 2000, JapanConsuming has become the leading provider of insights on Japanese retailers and consumer trends to retailers, brands, government agencies and investors. As well as a highly regarded monthly report on the market, JapanConsuming produces in-depth reports on retail sectors, seminars on key trends and telephone consulting to investors on trends and retailers.

JapanConsuming was founded by Michael Causton and Roy Larke. 

Penetration (the share of total retail sales) of e-commerce in Japan increased sharply in the past few years but still varies significantly by category.
The following insight looks at each consumer product category and how penetration has grown in the last few years and provides estimates of trends to 2025.
Even with these relatively cautious rates of growth, penetration rates are set to expand significantly in apparel, household &amp; interior, books &amp; media, and stationery but only retailers with form in successful online marketing will benefit from this with major negative implications for the many retailers that have failed to tackle the threat from online. This includes even major retailers like <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/seven-i-holdings-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1041:1" rel="noopener">Seven &amp; I Holdings (3382 JP)</a> which lags behind <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/aeon-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3:1" rel="noopener">Aeon Co Ltd (8267 JP), </a><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/rakuten-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:31:1" rel="noopener">Rakuten Inc (4755 JP)</a><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/aeon-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3:1" rel="noopener">  and </a><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/amazon-com-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:409:1" rel="noopener">Amazon.com Inc (AMZN US)</a> in the race to lead the battle for leadership in online food retailing.

Penetration (the share of total retail sales) of e-commerce in Japan increased sharply in the past few years but still varies significantly by category.
The following insight looks at each consumer product category and how penetration has grown in the last few years and provides estimates of trends to 2025.
Even with these relatively cautious rates of growth, penetration rates are set to expand significantly in apparel, household &amp; interior, books &amp; media, and stationery but only retailers with form in successful online marketing will benefit from this with major negative implications for the many retailers that have failed to tackle the threat from online. This includes even major retailers like Seven &amp; I Holdings (3382 JP) which lags behind Aeon Co Ltd (8267 JP), Rakuten Inc (4755 JP)  and Amazon.com Inc (AMZN US) in the race to lead the battle for leadership in online food retailing.

E-Commerce Penetration Increasing in All Retail Categories

On the back of the optimism over revenue growth from the Chinese cosmetics market, Japanese cosmetics companies with significant exposure to the Chinese cosmetics market (<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/shiseido-company-limited" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:5718:1" rel="noopener">Shiseido Company (4911 JP)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/kose-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18009:1" rel="noopener">Kose Corp (4922 JP)</a>) had a stellar rally and outperformed Topix by 12.2% and 6.3% respectively, since the most recent quarterly earnings.As a result, Kose’s consensus FY+2 EV/OP multiple has reached a new high of 33.4x, compared to the past five-year median of 15.1x.Meanwhile the Kao/Kose price ratio stands at 0.4, which is 12% below the 90-day average ratio and in line with minus two times the standard deviation of the 90-day average ratio, making <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/kao-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12933:1" rel="noopener">Kao Corp (4452 JP)</a> a hedge on the long side to a short Kose trade.

On the back of the optimism over revenue growth from the Chinese cosmetics market, Japanese cosmetics companies with significant exposure to the Chinese cosmetics market (Shiseido Company (4911 JP) and Kose Corp (4922 JP)) had a stellar rally and outperformed Topix by 12.2% and 6.3% respectively, since the most recent quarterly earnings.As a result, Kose’s consensus FY+2 EV/OP multiple has reached a new high of 33.4x, compared to the past five-year median of 15.1x.Meanwhile the Kao/Kose price ratio stands at 0.4, which is 12% below the 90-day average ratio and in line with minus two times the standard deviation of the 90-day average ratio, making Kao Corp (4452 JP) a hedge on the long side to a short Kose trade.

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/shiseido-company-limited" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:5718:1" rel="noopener">Shiseido Company (4911 JP)</a> delivered strong 4Q20 results yesterday with revenue and operating profit surpassing consensus estimates by ¥5.1bn and ¥19.5bn respectively.</li>
<li>The company’s revenue declined 6.2% YoY in 4Q20, compared to 17.1%, 34.4% and 16.3% in 1Q20, 2Q20 and 3Q20 respectively.</li>
<li>Shiseido made an operating profit of ¥6.1bn in the seasonally weak 4th quarter compared to the consensus operating loss estimate of ¥13.4bn.</li>
<li>The company’s October and November 2020 performance was above its expectations as the China business performed exceptionally well during the singles day sales period. However, the momentum decelerated from December 2020 onwards due to the resurgence of COVID-19 in Japan and the rest of the world.</li>
<li>Nonetheless, the share price rallied over 16% during the last couple of weeks on news regarding the disposal of the personal care business.</li>
</ul>



Shiseido Company (4911 JP) delivered strong 4Q20 results yesterday with revenue and operating profit surpassing consensus estimates by ¥5.1bn and ¥19.5bn respectively.
The company’s revenue declined 6.2% YoY in 4Q20, compared to 17.1%, 34.4% and 16.3% in 1Q20, 2Q20 and 3Q20 respectively.
Shiseido made an operating profit of ¥6.1bn in the seasonally weak 4th quarter compared to the consensus operating loss estimate of ¥13.4bn.
The company’s October and November 2020 performance was above its expectations as the China business performed exceptionally well during the singles day sales period. However, the momentum decelerated from December 2020 onwards due to the resurgence of COVID-19 in Japan and the rest of the world.
Nonetheless, the share price rallied over 16% during the last couple of weeks on news regarding the disposal of the personal care business.


Japan

Shiseido Company, Limited manufactures cosmetic and toiletry products. The Company offers an array of makeup and skin-care products, toiletries, beauty salon, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, and fine chemicals.

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

Shiseido Company (4911 JP)

Best World International: The End Is Not Yet In Sight

SGX suspended trading of Best World shares in May 2019, following a news article and a short seller report alleging the company of fabricating...

Oshadhi Kumarasiri

Male Grooming in Asia: Blooming Prospects. Skincare to Drive Growth

Steady expansion in the Male grooming sector in China & India is led by a generational shift in grooming habits and not a passing fad. Only a few...

Devi Subhakesan

E-Commerce Penetration Increasing in All Retail Categories

A review of online market share in all key consumer categories in Japan, with forecasts for e-commerce market share to 2025 –the sharp growth will...

Michael Causton

Kose: At a New EV/OP Peak

On the back of the optimism over revenue growth from the Chinese cosmetics market, Japanese cosmetics companies with significant exposure to the...

Oshadhi Kumarasiri

Shiseido: Lowballing 2021 Guidance

Previously, we questioned whether Shiseido is playing safe or departing from cost discipline as we felt that that the 4Q20 OP estimate was too low...

Oshadhi Kumarasiri

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)