Daily Brief Consumer: Lock&Lock, TSE Tokyo Price Index TOPIX, Miniso, Belle Fashion Group, Las Vegas Sands, Mao Geping Cosmetics, Winmark Corp, Levi Strauss & Co, Signet Jewelers, Sonos Inc and more

• On 17 April, Affinity Equity Partners offered a tender offer of a 30% stake in Lock & Lock at 8,750 won per share.
• The tender offer period is from 18 April to 14 May.  The number of shares that are included in this tender offer is 13.14 million shares (30.33% of outstanding shares).  
• Lock & Lock’s share price could trade higher close to the tender offer price of 8,750 won as the date as the end of the tender offer period approaches.

• Since “profitability of capital” like ROE or ROIC cannot create value in mid-to-long-term without improvement, the fact that ROE has stalled is a cause for concern for future stock prices.
• The slow growth in Net Profit Margin and the sluggish improvement in Asset Turnover and Financial Leverage indicate that it is still holding too much cash, cross-held shares, etc. 
• Nearly half of all listed companies are companies with major shareholders of 20% or more, which is an obstacle to improving corporate governance.

• We expect Miniso’s revenue for C1Q/2Q24 to be 1.0%/2.7% higher than consensus due to adequate inventory and strong sales of the Chiikawa series. 
• We believe Miniso has found a new competency in quickly turning around IP sales through economies of scale in supply chain and store network.
• We maintain the stock as BUY and raise our TP by US$3 to US$34/ADS.

• The core of Belle’s transformation is to inject “digitalization” into existing massive store assets, with strategy of “omnichannel+multi brands”. Belle also devotes significant resources to online channels and online-to-offline integration.
• Benefiting from the DTC retail model, Belle increases the probability of success when launching products. Licensing/acquisition are important ways to empower new brands and promote growth. Belle’s performance has rebounded.
• However, the path of transformation hasn’t yet been completed. Belle still mainly relies on heavy asset mode and is exposed to inventory risks. There ‘s still room for further improvement.

• Las Vegas Sands Corp.
• reported that Macao delivered $654 million of EBITDA for the quarter, a significant enhancement since the coronavirus pandemic’s end.
• According to them, robust growth in both gaming and non-gaming revenues is anticipated, propelled by their substantial share in non rolling table win, rolling table win, and slot ETG win.

• Mao Geping Cosmetics (1478187D CH) is looking to raise around US$300m in its upcoming Hong Kong IPO. The bookrunner on the deal is CICC.
• Mao Geping Cosmetics (MGC) operates in the premium beauty segment. Operating via its two brands, MAOGEPING and Love Keeps, MGC offers a wide range of color cosmetics and skincare products.
• As per F&S, MGC was the only domestic market player among the top ten premium beauty groups in China, ranking eighth by 2022 retail sales.

• Winmark operates five resale brands through a franchising model, including Plato’s Closet and Play It Again Sports
• The company’s focus is on providing access to quality used products at value pricing, contributing to the circular economy
• CEO Brett Heface discusses the dynamics of managing the brands, growth strategies, and the company’s mission to provide resale for everyone

This content is sourced through publicly available sources and has been machine generated. Information displayed is for general informational purposes only.

• Levi Strauss & Co reported revenues of $1.6 billion, reflecting a decline of 8% on a constant currency basis due to a $100 million shift from Q2 into Q1 related to the ERP implementation in the U.S. However, excluding this shift and the effect of exiting the Denizen business in Russia, Q1 revenues were flat.
• The company’s adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) were $0.26, which outperformed expectations.
• This improvement was mainly driven by a 240 basis-point increase in gross margin and prudently managing the company’s expenses.

• SIG is a specialty jewelry retailer with a strong presence in the US, Canada, and the UK
• After struggling with poor management and high mall exposure, the company has made progress under new leadership in 2018
• SIG has focused on shutting down underperforming stores, particularly in malls, to improve productivity and aims to continue growth in the jewelry retail industry.

This content is sourced through publicly available sources and has been machine generated. Information displayed is for general informational purposes only. This article was originally published 3 months ago on Value Investors Club.

• Sonos, the leading speaker manufacturing company, recently reported its Q1 2024 results.
• Extenuating despite various cyclical challenges, Sonos exceeded its expectations by delivering a revenue of $612.9 million, a GAAP gross margin of 46.1%, and adjusted EBITDA of $115 million.
• Its free cash flow was also improved to $269 million.