Investment Research - Asia Consumer Sector, Investory

Devi Subhakesan

Investment Research - Asia Consumer Sector. 

Equity Research experience of over 20 years. Earlier, Analyst for leading Buy and Sell-side institutions, covering markets in ASEAN, India, and North Asia. Expertise spans various sectors - Consumer Discretionary, Media, Textiles, Oil, Gas, and Coal.
Passionate about mindfulness and meditation.

Investment Research - Asia Consumer Sector

Alibaba's Investor Day - Jack Ma on Globalization, Trade War and the Future, A Few Takeaways(Part I)

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.

Event-Driven

<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/787" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:787:1">Alibaba Group Holding (BABA US)</a>'s unsaid India game plan - Actions speak louder than words. We put together <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/787" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:787:1">Alibaba Group Holding (BABA US)</a>'s investments across multiple verticals in India since 2015 to understand its game plan. At it's recently concluded Investor day, management spoke extensively about driving growth from other developing Asian markets without mentioning 'India' even once. We believe that they are attempting to recreate in India an ecosystem similar to their online commerce in China - backed by high user frequency and engagement. However, unlike its home market,<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/787" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:787:1">Alibaba Group Holding (BABA US)</a> will have to navigate an environment which can be politically hostile, risky/restrictive from the regulatory perspective and have deep-pocketed global and local competitors to boot. This could possibly be why it has chosen to operate undercover for now.
In our earlier report,  <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/787" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:787:1"> </a><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/alibaba-s-investor-day-jack-ma-on-globalization-trade-war-and-the-future-a-few-takeaways-part-i" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:24309">Alibaba's Investor Day - Jack Ma on Globalization, Trade War and the Future, A Few Takeaways(Part I)</a><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/787" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:787:1">,</a>  we discussed its management addressing some of the key investor concerns at the recently concluded investor day at Hangzhou. With a gloomy macroeconomic/political outlook in the horizon, we looked at the company's expectations on 'how and how fast' it can continue to grow. As China's consumption growth slows down and its rate of online penetration moderates (and competitors get sharper), dominant e-commerce players like Alibaba are focusing on (1) innovative strategies, new segments to drive local growth and  (2) Overseas markets - South East Asia and South Asia, for now - to garner additional growth. We believe the pursuit of growth could get tougher given the changing environment, and the pace of growth would moderate as Alibaba moves on to its next phase. 
Quotes below from Jack Ma, Founder and Chairman highlighting the grey clouds on its horizon, mainly the negative consequences of a US-China trade war on the economy and Alibaba:
<blockquote>
"We should not focus on next quarter. We should not focus on next half year because no matter if the rainstorm calm, no matter how hard you run, you cannot run faster."
"When problems come, learn how to hide, how to train. "
</blockquote>

Alibaba Group Holding (BABA US)'s unsaid India game plan - Actions speak louder than words. We put together Alibaba Group Holding (BABA US)'s investments across multiple verticals in India since 2015 to understand its game plan. At it's recently concluded Investor day, management spoke extensively about driving growth from other developing Asian markets without mentioning 'India' even once. We believe that they are attempting to recreate in India an ecosystem similar to their online commerce in China - backed by high user frequency and engagement. However, unlike its home market,Alibaba Group Holding (BABA US) will have to navigate an environment which can be politically hostile, risky/restrictive from the regulatory perspective and have deep-pocketed global and local competitors to boot. This could possibly be why it has chosen to operate undercover for now.
In our earlier report,   Alibaba's Investor Day - Jack Ma on Globalization, Trade War and the Future, A Few Takeaways(Part I),  we discussed its management addressing some of the key investor concerns at the recently concluded investor day at Hangzhou. With a gloomy macroeconomic/political outlook in the horizon, we looked at the company's expectations on 'how and how fast' it can continue to grow. As China's consumption growth slows down and its rate of online penetration moderates (and competitors get sharper), dominant e-commerce players like Alibaba are focusing on (1) innovative strategies, new segments to drive local growth and  (2) Overseas markets - South East Asia and South Asia, for now - to garner additional growth. We believe the pursuit of growth could get tougher given the changing environment, and the pace of growth would moderate as Alibaba moves on to its next phase. 
Quotes below from Jack Ma, Founder and Chairman highlighting the grey clouds on its horizon, mainly the negative consequences of a US-China trade war on the economy and Alibaba:

"We should not focus on next quarter. We should not focus on next half year because no matter if the rainstorm calm, no matter how hard you run, you cannot run faster."
"When problems come, learn how to hide, how to train. "


Alibaba's India Game Plan - More than Meets the Eye; Investor Day Analysis (Part II)