Bottom line: New signals from Qihoo and Wuxi AppTech show they may be getting preferential treatment for A-share listings, as the regulator shifts its policies to favor high-quality private firms for IPOs.
Wuxi AppTech eyes A-share listing
New signals coming from China’s stock regulator hint that it’s softening its stance towards letting companies formerly listed in the US jump the queue for re-listings at home. That appears to be the message, following a string of new reports saying first software security specialist Qihoo 360and now drugmaker Wuxi AppTech are moving towards re-listings on the China A-share market, both within a relatively short period after leaving New York.
This latest development comes not long after SF Express (Shenzhen: 002352), China’s largest parcel delivery company, completed a backdoor listing in Shenzhen, which again shows the regulator might be easing its view on this kind of path to market. The broader theme here, and one that will be important for other private firms waiting to list in China, is that the securities regulator is finally realizing that it’s not always necessary to use a “first come first served” approach when choosing who gets to make IPOs. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: ZTE’s move into smart cars and Gome’s into smartphones follow a typical Chinese pattern of herd mentality investing, and are both likely to fare poorly.
ZTE buys car maker Granton
A couple of headlines are shining a spotlight on the herd mentality you often see among Chinese companies looking for the next big growth opportunity. One of those has telecoms stalwart ZTE (HKEx: 763; Shenzhen: 000063) buying a small bus maker, parroting a trend among a growing number of firms who see the future in smart vehicles. The other has the increasingly irrelevant electronics retailer Gome (HKEx: 493) rolling into the smartphone business, an area in desperate need of consolidation due to cutthroat competition. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Qihoo’s latest smartphones foray with its purchase of the obscure Blephone reflects the tenacity of founder Zhou Hongyi, but will quickly end in failure due to a late arrival and intense competition in the space.
Security software maker Qihoo 360 just doesn’t change its mind when opinionated CEO Zhou Hongyi sets his sights on something. After a somewhat disastrous beginning to Zhou’s foray into smartphones over the last 2 years, he’s loudly proclaiming that 2017 will be the year of the smartphone for his company. And to show he’s serious, Qihoo has just revealed that it paid an “eight-digit” figure for an obscure smartphone maker called Blephone. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Many US-listed Chinese companies that have yet to complete privatization bids announced last year are likely to formally abandon the plans in the next few months, after new withdrawals from Autohome and China Information Technology.
Autohome abandons buyout bid
It’s been well over a year since the cresting for a wave of privatization bids by US-listed Chinese firms, which were hoping to leave New York and get better valuations by re-listing back in China. But despite the early enthusiasm, many of the firms that announced such bids at the height of the frenzy have yet to complete their plans.
A small group of larger names, including Internet companies YY (Nasdaq: YY) and Momo (Nasdaq: MOMO), have formally announced the scrapping of their bids. Now 2 more have joined their ranks, with online car specialist Autohome (NYSE: ATHM) and cloud services provider China Information Technology (CNIT) (Nasdaq: CNIT) both announcing they have also abandoned their bids. At the same time, game developer Sky-mobi is moving forward with its own privatization bid, and has just announced the scheduling of a shareholder meeting to vote on the proposal. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba is the biggest beneficiary of business lost by Baidu after a scandal earlier this year, with search rivals Qihoo and Sogou also likely to pick up new business.
Baidu loses digital ad crown to Alibaba
A couple of news items are showing how Baidu’s (Nasdaq: BIDU) core search business is coming under assault from several directions, in an ominous sign for the company’s main revenue source. The first item shows that Baidu has officially lost its crown as China’s top digital adverting platform to e-commerce titan Alibaba (NYSE: BABA), following a scandal earlier this year that wiped out up to a fifth of its revenue. In the other item, reports are saying that China’s other Internet titan Tencent (HKEx: 700) has boosted its stake in Sogou, one of Baidu’s main search rivals, to 45 percent. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Qihoo’s reorganization is part of its hurried bid to re-list in China to pay off backers of its privatization, while shareholders of Trina and Dangdang are likely to approve final management-led buyout offers for the 2 companies.
Qihoo rejigs in hopes of re-listing
The homeward migration of US-listed Chinese companies is in a trio of new headlines, showing that financiers are still willing to back de-listings for stronger companies. The largest of the headlines has security software specialist Qihoo 360 undergoing a major overhaul as it seeks to re-list in China, following its record-breaking privatization from New York last month. Meantime, solar panel maker Trina (NYSE: TSL) and e-commerce site Dangdang (NYSE: DANG) have also announced major advances in their own plans to privatize. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Zhou Hongyi should be commended for completing his privatization of Qihoo in the face of numerous obstacles, though his plans to re-list his company in China might take at least 1-2 years.
Qihoo completes de-listing
I haven’t always been a fan of security software specialist Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) over the years due to some of the overly aggressive and often ethically questionable business practices of chief Zhou Hongyi. But I have to admire the outspoken Zhou today, following word that he has reportedly just completed the biggest buyout of a US-listed Chinese company in history despite facing numerous obstacles that seems unsurmountable at times.
Far smaller US-listed Chinese companies have abandoned their plans to privatize due to choppy markets and the difficulty of completing such deals. But Zhou remained steadfast throughout in his desire to privatize his company, with the result that Qihoo’s shares will officially de-list with the start of trade on Monday, July 18, according to new Chinese media reports. (Chinese article) Read Full Post…
Bottom line: A Chinese group’s decision to downsize an earlier deal to buy Norway’s Opera was likely due to insufficient funds to complete the deal, but will still give Qihoo an important new browser asset in its drive to go global.
China group downsizes deal for Norway’s Opera
Just a day after trumpeting its successful privatization from New York, software security specialist Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) is being more low-key in announcing the new failure of its bid for Norwegian browser maker Opera (Oslo: OPERA). In fact, Qihoo was really just one member of a group that bid $1.2 billion earlier this year to buy Opera, owner of the world’s fourth most popular web browser. (previous post) Following the decision to scrap the sale, the 2 sides have simultaneously announced a smaller deal that would see the Chinese group buy about half of Opera’s assets for about $600 million. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on July 19. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Chinese $1.2 Bln Takeover of Norway’s Opera Fails, Pursues Alternative Deal (English article)
Didi Chuxing Raises Prices in Multiple Markets to Slow Cash Burning (Chinese article)
Hot Pot Chain Haidilao Makes IPO for Yihai International (HKEx: 1579) Unit (Chinese article)
The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on July 15. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Xiaomi in Major New Campaign to Go Upscale (Chinese article)
Car Inc’s (HKEx: 699) Hired Car Services Unit Approved to List on New Third Board (Chinese article)
Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) to De-List Before July 18 Market Opening (Chinese article)
Tencent (HKEx: 700) Buys Controlling Stake in Online Music Firm China Music Corp (English article)
Bottom line: Coolpad’s latest loss forecast shows it is struggling due to intense competition, and will need to sell more of itself to LeEco in the next 6 months to keep funding its operations.
Coolpad falls sharply into the red
The woes continue to mount for former smartphone high-flyer Coolpad (HKEx: 2369), which has just announced a profit warning that will see it drop sharply into the red in the first half of this year. The move was almost inevitable due to the overheated state of China’s smartphone market, as Coolpad finally ran out of tricks to hide its mounting losses. The company did admit its sales were plunging in its last earnings report for the year 2015, even as its profit quadrupled that year. But this latest profit warning for the first half of 2016 shows the company is now squarely in the loss column. Read Full Post…
