In today’s briefing:
- Ajinomoto Placement – Share Buyback Should Aid Group Selling
- Amara Holdings (AMA SP): Albert Teo Family/Dymon Asia’s Unconditional S$0.60 Offer
- Zeekr Pre-IPO – The Negatives – Remains Highly Dependent on Geely
- Haier Smart Home (6690 HK): Stays Smart
- Amara (AMA SP): Teo Family’s Lifetime High Offer
- Takashimaya: At Last a Revival in Department Store Profits
- Puregym – ESG Report – Lucror Analytics
- Tele Columbus – ESG Report – Lucror Analytics
Ajinomoto Placement – Share Buyback Should Aid Group Selling
- A group of shareholders are looking to raise US$444m by trimming their respective stakes in Ajinomoto Co (2802 JP) via an extended secondary follow-on.
- While the selldown doesn’t seem particularly well flagged, it won’t be a very large one to digest at just eight days of three month ADV.
- In a bid to cushion the selldown, Ajinomoto plans to buyback its stock to the tune of 10m shares, which would amount to 80% of the base shares on offer.
Amara Holdings (AMA SP): Albert Teo Family/Dymon Asia’s Unconditional S$0.60 Offer
- Amara Holdings (AMA SP) has disclosed a voluntary unconditional offer from Dymon Asia and the Albert Teo Family at S$0.60 per share, a 30.4% premium to the last close price.
- On 17 June, Amara received a written notification from Mr Albert Teo Hock Chuan (CEO) and Ms Susan Teo Geok Tin (Company Secretary) that they are mulling an offer.
- The offer price is final. The offer is attractive and marginally below the ten-year high. Hitting the 90% compulsory acquisition threshold implies a minority acceptance rate of 79.3%.
Zeekr Pre-IPO – The Negatives – Remains Highly Dependent on Geely
- ZEEKR, a premium EV brand by Geely Auto (175 HK), aims to raise around US$500m in its US listing.
- Zeekr was formed in Mar 2021 as a JV between Geely and its founder. Its first model was launched in Apr 21 with deliveries starting in Oct 21.
- In this note, we talk about the not-so-positive aspects of the deal.
Haier Smart Home (6690 HK): Stays Smart
- Haier Smart Home (6690 HK) is less exposed to China’s real estate market than one would have thought. Despite poor property industry, HSH still generated 12.9% earnings growth in 3Q23.
- We are delighted to see further margin pick-up in 2Q23-3Q23, thanks to digitalisation and better efficiency. We believe such a trend can be sustained over the next 12-18 months.
- More innovative products will drive market share, and better margin can support a 13% 3-year earnings CAGR. ROE is high at 17-8% despite net cash (8.8% of share price).
Amara (AMA SP): Teo Family’s Lifetime High Offer
- Back in mid-June, hotel and investment property play Amara Holdings (AMA SP) gained 38% over three consecutive days on news of a possible Offer from its controlling shareholders.
- The Teo family controls ~51% of shares out. No price was mentioned. This development was discussed in Amara Holdings Gains On Possible Offer.
- After shares were halted on the 10th November, Amara has now announced a best-and-final unconditional cash Offer at S$0.60/share, a chunky 53.8% to undisturbed and a lifetime high.
Takashimaya: At Last a Revival in Department Store Profits
- Takashimaya saw a strong increase in sales in 1H2023, helping profit rise to record levels with much of the growth coming from clothing and expects similar for the full year.
- Unlike many rivals, the department store is not at all sanguine about the prospects for continued growth in luxury sales and the inbound tourist market – calling it a bubble.
- It is instead emphasising profit growth over higher sales by targeting locals through store upgrades and better cost performance clothing – while also closing stores that are no longer viable.
Puregym – ESG Report – Lucror Analytics
- Lucror Analytics’ ESG Scores are based on a 3-tiered scale and are adjusted for Controversies (if applicable).
- We assess PureGym’s ESG as “Adequate”, in line with its Social and Governance scores. The company has a “Weak” score for the Environmental pillar. Controversies are “Immaterial”, but Disclosure is “Weak”.
- PureGym is the second-largest gym and fitness operator in Europe by number of gyms
Tele Columbus – ESG Report – Lucror Analytics
- Lucror Analytics’ ESG Scores are based on a 3-tiered scale and are adjusted for Controversies (if applicable).
- We assess Tele Columbus’ ESG as “Adequate”, in line with its Social and Governance scores. The company has a “Strong” score for the Environmental pillar. Controversies are “Immaterial” and Disclosure is “Adequate”.
- Tele Columbus (TC) is Germany’s third-largest cable operator, offering cable TV, broadband Internet and fixed-line telephony services.
💡 Before it’s here, it’s on Smartkarma
Sign Up for Free
The Smartkarma Preview Pass is your entry to the Independent Investment Research Network
- ✓ Unlimited Research Summaries
- ✓ Personalised Alerts
- ✓ Custom Watchlists
- ✓ Company Data and News
- ✓ Events & Webinars
