Daily Brief Consumer: Sun Art Retail, Trip.com, Toyota Motor Corp Spon Adr, S.M.Entertainment Co, Allied Blenders & Distillers, TSE Tokyo Price Index TOPIX, Marriott Vacations World, MGP Ingredients, CIEL , Build A Bear Workshop and more

• Sun Art Retail (6808 HK)‘s FY24 (fiscal year ending March) numbers were overall unimpressive, with sales down 13% yoy and net loss increasing to RMB1.6bn.
• The new CEO’s strategy is to refocus on SSSG of offline traffic and restore price competitiveness.  April and May SSSG improved. 
• The stock is up 20% since my initial insight on the name in March, and I believe more upside remains.

• In a tough macro environment with travel as perhaps the only bright spot in consumption
• However, equally compelling is the demand negatives of overseas travel as a somewhat luxurious consumption item and tough competition at home;
• Given the stock’s valuation, we maintain the rating as SELL but raise TP to US$45/ADS, implying 2025 PE of 15x.

• Toyota Motor Corporation recently concluded its fiscal year ended March 2024 with notable financial results and established expectations for the upcoming fiscal year.
• The company’s actual operating income reached a record JPY 5.35 trillion, significantly bolstered by support and cooperation from various stakeholders, including employees, suppliers, and dealers.
• This substantial figure reflects the company’s commitment to region and product-based management over many years.

• The major K-Pop stocks had the biggest up day so far this year on 23 May, driven by potential easing of Korean cultural contents restrictions by the Chinese government. 
• In the past nine years, there has been a ban on Korean singers’ performances in China.
• Among the major K-Pop stocks, we continue to have a Positive View on S.M.Entertainment Co (041510 KS) but bearish on HYBE (352820 KS) and YG Entertainment (122870 KS).

• Allied Blenders & Distillers (9844250Z IN) is looking to raise about US$180m in its upcoming India IPO.  
• ABD is the largest Indian-owned Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) company and the third largest IMFL company in India, in terms of annual sales volumes between FY14 and FY22.
• In this note, we provide a summary of its refiling updates, undertake a quick peer comparison and share our initial thoughts on valuation.

• While communication with investors is an important tool, “TSE’s request” should be the starting point for solving management issues, as it gave managers the opportunity to think about strategy themselves.
• Since many Japanese companies have management issues, it is not surprising that more activist investors believe that investment opportunities can be created by encouraging companies to solve these issues.
• Even if a company can convince activist investors through shareholder relations, it will only buy time, and investors/shareholders are looking to increase corporate value by solving problems.

• Marriott Vacations Worldwide (VAC) reported positive results on February 21st, 2024, indicating a potential turnaround for the company.
• Despite a challenging year in 2023, VAC’s issues were temporary and offer an opportunity to invest in a growing business with a 10%+ free cash flow yield.
• VAC is a leisure-focused timeshare business with a strong presence in the vacation ownership market, owning upscale resort brands and deriving 35% of adjusted EBITDA from recurring sources.

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.

• Short-selling opportunity in American whiskey prices, with MGPI as a target
• Stock price of company declined 15% after reporting, but author sees larger downward trend
• Changing market dynamics provide significant upside potential for short position, timed well to capitalize on industry changes.

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.

• CIEL Limited (SEMDEX: CIEL) is a Mauritius listed diversified industrial company.
• In this update we focus on CIEL’s Finance Cluster which in 1H24 accounted for 35.9% of Group (Grp) FCF, 25.8% of Grp EBITDA and 15.5% of Grp revenues.
• CIEL has a diversified international growth portfolio of 25 companies across 6 ‘clusters’ – Textile, Properties, Healthcare, Hotels & Resorts, Agro and Finance.

• We are reiterating our Buy rating, $41 price target and projections with Build-A-Bear Workshop announcing 1QFY24 (April) results before the open on Thursday. We believe the company remains one of the key winners in the specialty retailing space, with strong returns, low inventory and compelling economics, which will become even more apparent as Build-A-Bear expands the higher-margin commercial and franchising segments, opens key tourist driven locations and continues to repurchase BBW shares. As such, and with BBW trading at 8.1X our FY25 EPS, we view the risk/reward as impressive, and we reiterate our Buy rating and $41 price target,