SG Wealth Builder

Bring on the champagne! Light up the fireworks! AEM share price looks set for a splendid run after the Group delivered an incredibly stellar 1HFY2022 financial result. Revenue for 1H2022 surged by 181% year-on-year to $540.5 million, while net profit rocketed 180% year-on-year to smash $83 million. The first half revenue and net profit were the highest in the Group’s history.

Prior to the result release, many investors (including myself) have the jitters. After all, Intel has posted a brutal US$500 million loss in the second quarter, resulting in the company cutting back on expenditure. Nonetheless, AEM survived the scare to post a stellar financial result. While it is too early to claim that AEM has managed to weed off its reliance on Intel for revenue, the result could push AEM to expedite its effort in diversifying revenue source.

The patent obtained in July for the thermal control for its System Level Test equipment would give AEM the trump card in its negotiation with the top ten semiconductor companies. The contract wins from 2 major customers vindicated my belief that intellectual property is the way to win the battle.

The contract wins came from “a leading High-Performance Computing (“HPC”)/Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) company” and “a leading mobile devices company”. In my assessment, the contract wins should help to offset the potential sales order reduction from Intel. This is because the Group has revised FY2022 revenue guidance upwards to be in the range between $750 million to $800 million. In the last quarter, the revenue forecast was $700 million to $750 million.

Previously, I wrote that AEM may become a $1 billion revenue company. On the basis of the first half performance, that day will come sooner than I expect. In fact, I would have expected AEM share price to …

Sign up for only $19.99! It could be peace before the perfect storm. Following the release of a decent set of financial result, the DBS share price has stalled somewhat. Rightfully, investors should have plenty to cheer about as the rising interest rates should provide power tailwinds for the bank’s business. Nonetheless, in today’s context, things aren’t always so straightforward.

Being the largest lender in Singapore, DBS’ business is sensitive to new property cooling measures. In the December 2021 cooling measures, the loan-to-value for HDB loans was tightened. However, it should be noted that round of cooling measures did not affect financial institution loans. As such, DBS housing loan portfolio has been resilient so far.

Fast forward to August 2022, the world has changed so much. Yes, the pandemic is still around but the invasion of Ukraine by Russia has created plenty of market chaos like never before. On the other hand, the US Federal Reserve is struggling to tame raging inflation by hiking interest rates. Despite these uncertainties, Singapore property market continued to defy gravity, with property prices sky-rocketing.

According to URA, prices of private residential properties increased by 3.5% in 2nd quarter of 2022, compared with the 0.7% increase in the previous quarter. As of July 2022, there were 12 collective sale deals totaling about $3.5 billion, more than the $2.2 billion seen in 2021. Question now is whether the red-hot property market would lead to another round of new property cooling measures? If so, what would be the impact on DBS share price?

If you look at the above graph, the property price index has been increasing on a break-neck pace for the past two years. Prior to the recent bull-run, the 2018 property cooling measure had helped to moderate the rate of increase. …

NDP Special Offer! On 21 July 2022, Mapletree Logistics Trust (SGX: M44U) delivered its 1QFY2022/2023 result. In view of this, its time to take stock the performance of the S-REIT. Unit price had tumbled following the US Federal Reserve interest rate hikes in March and May. Subsequently, it seems that the counter had bottomed in late May as unit price began to start climbing. The tepid unit price performances were attributed to the lack of buying by institutional investors. For the past 7 months, Mapletree Logistics Trust did not feature in the SGX Top Ten Institutional Net Buy Stocks.

The million-dollar question confronting investors right now must be whether Mapletree Logistics Trust (M44U) will launch another mega equity financing to fund its overseas logistics asset acquisitions. The $700 million equity fundraising in November 2021 to purchase the China, Vietnam and Japan assets had knocked the wind out of the unit price, which never returned to the $2.00 mark prior to the equity fundraising.

For background, the principal activity of MLT is to invest in a diversified portfolio of logistics real estate in Asia Pacific with the aim of providing its unitholders with a stable distribution stream. As at 30 June 2022, the Group’s portfolio had grown to a portfolio of 185 properties in Singapore, Australia, China, Hong Kong SAR, India, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and Vietnam. The total value of assets under management is $13.0 billion.

During the quarter, MLT completed the acquisitions of Mapletree (Yuyao) Logistics Park in China and Baeksa Logistics Centre in South Korea. The management has announced the redevelopment of 51 Benoi Road in Singapore, as well as the potential amalgamation of Subang 3 and 4 in Malaysia with the two land parcels acquired recently. The Benoi redevelopment project is estimated to cost approximately $197 million…

NDP Special Offer! On 5 July 2022, AEM obtained the grant of patent for the thermal control technology used in its System Level Test equipment. Will this patent change the fortune of the semiconductor test equipment manufacturer? Following the fallouts from the Russia-Ukraine conflict and soaring interest rates, AEM share price has been in sluggish form in 2022. Year-to-date, AEM share price slumped by about 17%.

One should not underestimate the potential impact of the new patent on AEM share price. Non-executive Chairman Loke Wai San was the man who led AEM out of dark Egypt when the former management was embroiled in a corruption scandal in 2012. Back then, AEM share price was on the brink of collapse and the company had been placed on the SGX Watch-List.

Despite the challenges, Loke Wai San saw the potential in the equipment business due to the partnership with leading US chipmaker, Intel. The decision proved to be pivotal as the partnership between AEM and Intel led to a patent for its test handling stacking technology. The patent was granted in March 2018. If investors look back, AEM share price used to trade at less than $0.10 in 2016. The patent turbocharged AEM share price to nearly $2.00 in March 2018.

Obviously, the 2018 patent has led to a significant volume ramp up from Intel, thereby increasing the revenue for AEM. Fast forward to 2022, Intel is no longer the force it used to be. As such, my sensing is that the management of AEM is trying its very best to weed off its heavy reliance on Intel for business. Currently, the Group is engaging top tier semiconductor companies. The new patent granted in July 2022 should be useful in its engagements with the semiconductor companies, thereby providing much needed revenue …

NDP Special Offer! Investors must have that “uh-oh” feeling. iFAST share price looks set for an explosive thrashing following the revelation of net loss of $2.69 million recorded in 2QFY2022. The net loss was a complete reversal from the $7 million net profit recorded in 2QFY2021. The management claimed that the bizarre net loss was attributable to the one-time estimated impairment allowance of $5.2 million from its exit of iFAST India Holdings Pte Ltd (“iFAST India Holdings”). Nonetheless, investors wasted no time punishing the counter as it sank from $4.00 on 22 July to a low of $3.72 on 25 July.

In my blog, I have cautioned before that whenever a listed company announced its financial result in the middle of the night or over the weekends, you can be sure like hell that the result is going to be awful. Indeed, this was what happened to iFAST when the Group released its 1HFY2022 financial result on 23 July 2022 (a Saturday morning). In the good old days, such a strategy could help to break the fall of iFAST share price. However, with the proliferation of financial blogs in Singapore, such trick may not work.

What goes up must come down. iFAST share price became stuff of legend among SGX stocks when the counter rocketed from $1.00 in 2020 to an incredible high of $10 in 2021. But the supersonic form of iFAST share price is simply not sustainable as the counter began to stall in 2022. The meltdown of iFAST was due to its misadventure in India. The latest India move to ban usage of pool account for mutual fund transactions followed the October 2018’s ban by the Indian authorities to ban upfront commissions for mutual funds.

In recent years, many countries are starting to ban sales …

NDP Special Offer! On 19 July 2022, Sembcorp Industries issued a profit guidance that the “financial results for 1H2022 is expected to be materially higher than 1H2021”. In this regard, investors should expect plenty of fireworks for Sembcorp Industries share price on 5 August 2022. However, before Nirvana can be reached, investors must put on their seat belt as stock market may be roiled yet again by the upcoming US FOMC meeting which herald another interest rate hike.

Being an utility company and waste management company, Sembcorp Industries’ businesses are deemed defensive, serving as an hedging investment amid the inflationary environment. Against the backdrop of soaring commodity prices, the Group’s Conventional Energy business is expected to be given a strong tailwind due to the strong energy demand and higher margins.

For FY2021, Conventional Energy business was the largest profit contributor as the segment raked in $174 million of net income. If it’s not for the $212 million impairment of Chongqing Songzao power plant incurred, Sembcorp Industries would have posted a significantly larger profit for FY2021. Henceforth, all eyes will be on the performance of the Conventional Energy business this year.

In FY2021, Singapore and India markets contributed 62% and 19% of revenue respectively. In Singapore, 95% of the electricity is generated using natural gas as raw materials. So the key index that would affect Sembcorp Industries share price would be the price trend of natural gas as it would affect the profit margin. On the other hand, Sembcorp’s thermal plants in India uses 70% domestic coals and 30% imported coals. Thus, the other index that would affect Sembcorp Industries share price should be the price trend of domestic and imported coal prices in India.

Note that this is an opinion article and not meant to be a financial advice. …

NDP Special Offer! Is NetLink NBN Trust share price on magic potion? The soaring interest rates and raging inflation had walloped global stock markets, sending growth stocks into a devastating tailspin. Amid the chaos, NetLink NBN Trust share price remains rock solid. Why so?

My last article on NetLink NBN Trust share price was in 2019. An update on this counter is long overdue. In addition, an SG Wealth Builder member wrote in to enquire about the “weak” performance of the stock. As such, I will do some deep dive into the outlook of NetLink NBN Trust share price in 2022.

Needless to say, the operating environment has turned significantly dark vis-à-vis the time when NetLink NBN Trust got listed in 2017. The pandemic, Russia-Ukraine conflict, rising inflation and interest rate hikes had torpedoed numerous growth stocks. In fact, global stock markets have been on a knife edge due to these dark events. Interestingly, NetLink NBN Trust’s business appears relatively unaffected by these adverse events for the past two years.

At an average trading price of $0.96, NetLink NBN Trust is being traded at a level above the IPO price in 2017. Year-to-date, NetLink NBN Trust share price has dropped marginally by only about 3.5%. In comparison, many technology stocks like iFAST, AEM and UMS had plunged by at least two digits. In the case of iFAST, the counter has crashed 50%. In this regard, NetLink NBN Trust has been pretty resilient.

Question now: is the form of NetLink NBN Trust sustainable in light of the challenging operating environment? Following the release of FY2022 financial result, the counter seemed a bit off-colour. The Group has a policy to distribute 100% of its cash available for distribution on a semi-annual basis. So when profit before tax dropped and depreciation costs …

Sign up for only $19.99! One man’s poison is another’s meat. The interest rate hikes by US Federal Reserve has rattled global stock markets. In June 2022, inflation in US rocketed to 9.1%, the highest in 40 years. Due to this, the market is fearing another interest rate hike of 75 basis points, potentially sparking a flight to safety among investors. While investors are fleeing from the stock market, demand for Singapore Savings Bond had reached record high.

Singapore Savings Bond (SSB) was launched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in 2015. The bond is designed to be a safe and flexible investment product that allows Singaporeans to meet their savings and investment needs. Though SSB is structured as a bond, the product has some features that make it more like a fixed deposit because of its liquidity. The distinctive feature of SSB is that the interest rate increases the longer you hold, with a 10-year maturity.

In the initial years, the demand for SSB had been lacklustre. When it was launched in October 2015, a total of $1.2 billion worth of SSB was offered but only $418 million was sold. The effective return per year for the initial batch was 2.63%, which was quite decent if you asked me. Since the launch batch, the demand has dropped consistently to a low of $13.7 million in November 2016 (effective return per year was 1.79%).

However, demands for SSB returned in full force when US Federal Reserve hiked interest three times (25 basis points each) in 2017 and four times (25 basis points each) in 2018. During that period, the average applied SSB was between $300 million to $500 million. With the rising demands, MAS also increased the offered amount gradually from monthly $150 million to $300 million. Interestingly, …

Sign up for only $19.99! How high will it go? Since my last article on Hour Glass share price in May 2021, the counter went berserk. Back then, I had predicted that Hour Glass share price had the potential to reach $1.30. However, the counter went on a rampage and smashed a record high of $2.50 on 6 May 2022. Given the splendid form of Hour Glass share price, investors must be feeling surreal.

The supersonic form of Hour Glass share price is in stark contrast to the decline in the broad market. Despite the horrible operating environment, the management of Hour Glass managed to steer the company through the storm. For the past five years, revenue grew steadily from $698 million in FY2018 to a high of $1.03 billion in FY2022. During the corresponding period, net profit soared from $50 million to $155 million, a three-fold increase. Henceforth, the bullish form of Hour Glass share price is based on strong business fundamentals.

The raging form of Hour Glass share price has led to the market capitalization to cross the $1 billion mark. At the point of writing, the market capitalization was $1.66 billion. Within a year, Hour Glass has reached the billion-dollar league. This is certainly a remarkable feat! Question now is: how did the watch retailer pull this off?

Data from the Swiss Watch Industry revealed that export of Swiss luxury watches to Singapore had exceeded the pre-pandemic level. And it seems that Hour Glass had seized the opportunity. The full-year financial report showed that revenue for the South East Asia & Oceania rose to $921 million in FY2022 from $646 million in FY2021. In comparison, North East Asia increased incrementally to $112 million from $96 million in last year.

Source: Swiss Watch Industry…

Sign up for only $19.99! Basically, the wheels came off the wagon. After charging to a record high of $37.20 on 14^th February 2022, DBS Group Holdings share price crashed to Earth, falling by a whopping 19% to reach $30.20 (at the point of writing). The bearish form of DBS Group Holdings share price certainly confounded investors as many are expecting the bank to benefit from the on-going interest rate hikes. What on earth is happening to the leading light of SGX?

Truth be told, DBS Bank turned in a subpar 1^st quarter performance despite the rising interest rates. Net profit dropped 10% year-on-year to reach $1.8 billion. Many investors were still bullish on DBS Group Holdings share price following the acquisition of Citibank Taiwan consumer bank in January 2022. So you can imagine investors’ disappointment when the 1^st quarter business update was announced.

The culprits for the poorer financial performances in 1QFY2022 were net fee income and other non-interest income. Apparently, the weaker market sentiment affected the bank’s wealth management and investment banking. The first quarter business update did not provide a detailed breakdown on the business performance. Nonetheless, I suspect the lockdowns in China (DBS has stakes in two banks in China) and the capitulation of cryptocurrencies may have led to collateral damage to the wealth management and investment banking arms of DBS, thereby causing DBS Group Holdings share price to lose steam.

Looking back, the collapse of TerraUSD stablecoin in May coincided with the spike in short-selling volume of DBS shares. For the week of 9 May, the short-selling volume surged to a high of 5.7 million shares. The reason for the short-selling attacks is unclear to me but it is well-known that DBS is entering the cryptocurrency space in a big way …

Sign up for only $19.99! Amid the soaring commodity prices, the sluggish share prices of SGX-listed commodity firms had left many investors feeling exasperated. Their agony is understandable. After all, commodity businesses are highly cyclical in nature. If the company share price missed this current boat, you never know when will the next upturn come. In this regard, will Rex Intl share price swim or sink?

A member of SG Wealth Builder has enquired the bearish form of Rex Intl share price in 2022. Indeed, oil prices had been in a stupendous form since the start of the year, driven largely by the war in Ukraine. Rex Intl is an oil exploration and production company with a focus in Oman, Malaysia and Norway. So logically, the current oil boom should lift Rex Intl share price. Yet year-to-date, Rex Int share price tanked 17%. Sound ridiculous right?

What made the form of Rex Intl share price so unpalatable to investors was that [This is a premium article. The rest of the content is blocked and can be accessible by SG Wealth Builder Members only. To read the full content, please sign up as member.]

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Sign up for only $19.99! According to the latest World Bank report, coal prices had reached an all-time high in March following the start of the war in Ukraine. The surge is due to the increased demand for coal as a substitute for natural gas in electricity generation. Against this backdrop, Geo Energy share price stunned many investors as the share price of the coal mining group crashed from a high of $0.58 in April 2022 to the current $0.38. The bizarre drop led to a query from a concerned SG Wealth Builder Member.

What made the meltdown of Geo Energy share price so extraordinary was that it came on the back of a stellar financial performance. In February 2022, the Group announced that net profit for FY2021 amounted to US$179.1 million, representing a complete turnaround from the net loss of US$11.5 million from operations in 2020. However, a deeper analysis revealed that the outlook for Geo Energy may not be so rosy in the near future. Apparently, the big boys are aware of this and are shorting the counter.

In my previous article, I have shared with readers how to use SGX short-selling data to determine if a particular SGX stock has been targeted by short-sellers. In this article, I will apply the methodology and provide the explanation for the seemingly inexplicable fall of Geo Energy share price.

As a matter of personal policy, I have avoided investing in penny stocks in recent years after burning my fingers in a S-chip more than ten years ago. From my experience, investing in penny stocks may generate great returns when the share prices soar. Conversely, you may incur big paper losses when the tide turns against you. Many times, the volatilities of the penny stocks are driven by the …

Sign up for only $19.99! Is CEO Wong Kim Yin the Special One to bring Sembcorp Industries to the Holy Land? Since the explosive divorce with Sembcorp Marine, Sembcorp Industries share price had gone from strength to strength, surging from $1.18 in September 2020 to the recent $2.87. Within the span of nearly 2 years, Sembcorp Industries share price rocketed 140%. Given the splendid form of Sembcorp Industries share price, credit should be given to the Group CEO, Wong Kim Yin, who joined the Group only in July 2020.

In 2022, against the backdrop of a challenging operating environment, Sembcorp Industries share price confounded many investors by continuing its fine run. Year-to-date, Sembcorp Industries share price rocketed 42% (at the point of writing). Given that pandemic is not still not over yet and the world is still coming to terms with the fallout from the Ukraine-Russia war, the rampant run of Sembcorp Industries share price is indeed puzzling. What could be the driving forces for this counter?

In my assessment, the clue can be gleaned from the full-year annual report. The annoying thing about Sembcorp Industries is that the company stopped publishing quarterly financial result since 2020 after SGX waived off this requirement. Thus, investors can only form their investment thesis based on half-year or full-year financial results.

In early 2022, Sembcorp Energy India Limited (SEIL), has signed a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) to supply 625 megawatts of power to Andhra Pradesh state power distribution companies for 12 years. Subsequently, Sembcorp Energy India Limited (SEIL), signed a power purchase agreement with PTC India Limited to supply 200MW of power to Bangladesh till May 2033. The former will commence in 2023 while the latter was expected to commence operation in the first half of 2022.

Given that the 625MW …

Sign up for only $19.99! Recently, a Lifetime Member of SG Wealth Builder enquired about the SGX short selling data. As such, I will share with readers on how to find this data in SGX website. Readers should find this data useful as it may provide important clues on the performances of a stock. From the SGX short selling data, investors may also know if short sellers are behind the volatility of a stock.

Disclaimer for this article: SGX did not pay me to write this article nor am I promoting short selling. In addition, the information contained in this article is based entirely on my research obtained from content provided in SGX website. I do not have experience on SGX short selling.

Generally speaking, short selling helps to prevent the market from becoming over-exuberance. This is especially so during bull market when share prices get ahead of the business growth. Therefore, short selling allows for efficient market pricing and enables investors to hedge their portfolio. Although short selling has it merits, such activity may be disruptive to the market if it spirals out of control. Hence, Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and SGX publish information on SGX short selling activities so that there is transparency. In other words, the SGX short selling data will ensure a more “level playing” field among retail investors, who tend to take “long” positions on stocks.

Short selling refers to the sale of securities that the seller does not own at the time of the sale. Short selling may either be: ‘covered’ or ‘uncovered’ (also referred to as ‘naked’ short selling). In ‘covered’ short selling, at the time of the sale, the seller has borrowed the securities or has otherwise made arrangements to fulfil his obligation to deliver the securities. In ‘uncovered’ …

NDP Special Offer! The past few days had been absolutely chaotic as global stock markets tumbled over fear of recession and soaring inflation in US. Investors were bracing for US Federal Reserves to raise interest rate hikes aggressively to fight the raging inflation. Consequently, the Federal Reserves did raise interest rate – by a whopping 75 basis points, the biggest hike since 1994. Will OCBC share price rocket in the aftermath of the interest rate hike?

Conventional wisdom indicates that bank stocks should perform well in high inflationary environment as high interest rates generally lead to higher net interest incomes for the banks. This was my hypothesis when I invested in 6000 of OCBC shares in August 2021. Back then, I anticipated that US Federal Reserves would hike interest rates this year and that Singapore bank stocks would be the biggest beneficiary from the rate hikes. However, OCBC share price flatter to deceive. And I was humbled.

Till date, US Federal Reserves had raised interest rate by 150 basis points (75 basis points on 15 June, 50 basis points on 7 May and 25 basis points on 17 March). Yet, OCBC share price remained stagnant year-to-date (at the point of writing). The sluggish OCBC share price prompted me to sell when OCBC share price was trading at $12.40 in May 2022. After factoring the interim dividend of $0.25 issued in August 2021, the yield amounted to 2% (I have exited before ex-dividend in May 2022).

The nine months of holding the OCBC shares was truly a frustrating experience as DBS and UOB share prices both had robust runs in that period. In comparison, OCBC share price had been lethargic and totally lack form. Thus, I am glad to have exited at $12.40 as OCBC share price fell following the interest …

NDP Special Offer! The power tailwind may turn out to be a deadly headwind. Many analysts, including myself, had believed that the ongoing US Federal Reserve interest rate hikes will turbocharge Singapore bank stocks like DBS Group Holdings share price to high heavens. Yet that fantasy has not materialized despite the fact that US Federal Reserves had raised interest rate by 75 basis points (50 basis points on 7 May and 25 basis points on 17 March). Year-to-date, DBS Group Holdings share price had tumbled 8% instead. What the hell has happened to the leading light of SGX?

A concerned SG Wealth Builder Lifetime member has written in to enquire about the bizarre performance of Singapore bank stocks against the backdrop of rising interest rates. To be fair, US bank stocks like Bank of America and JP Morgan have performed worse in comparison to their Singapore counterparts, falling by an average of 25% year-to-date.

The prevalent thinking is that the surging inflation, coupled with the rising interest rates, could tip global economy into a recession. It also doesn’t help that the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict worsens the global supply-chain disruption brought forth by the pandemic. All these uncertainties create fear in the market. Although the contrarian would argue that one should invest when there is much fear in the market, investors should not throw caution to the wind. In my view, a storm may be brewing over in Asia. One that may wretch havoc to Singapore bank stocks like DBS Group Holdings share price.

Source: Bullionstar

Currently, Japanese yen is nearing a 24-year low against the greenback. The Japanese yen has been falling since early 2021 but the steepest fall occurred on 6 March 2022, a weak after the start of the Ukraine-Russia conflict. In the forex market, USD/JPY is …

NDP Special Offer! What a devastating plunge! From $13.06 on its first trading day (2 December 2021), Grab share price plunged by 80% to reach the abysmal level of $2.90. The terrifying nose-dive made Grab shares one of the worst IPO performers in recent memory, triggering plenty of soul-searching among investors.

Lately, one of my Lifetime Members wrote in to enquire about the disappointing performance of the “Super App” in Nasdaq. He also enquired if Grab should be listed in Southeast Asia instead of US. Indeed, much ink has been spilled on the volatility of Grab share price. I will attempt to cover the poor performance of Grab share price from another perspective.

When Grab debut in Nasdaq, data revealed that the short interest volume (29.4 million) had already exceeded the average daily share volume (26.7 million). To be frank, this is nothing out of ordinary. In the US market, short selling attacks are very prevalent. But what is intriguing is that the short interest for Grab surged consistently since IPO to reach more than 4-fold.

Based on the short interest data, it appears to me that the short-sellers have very bearish outlook for Grab share price. In fact, the volumes of short interest in the past six months are also not showing any signs of peaking. In this regard, those who are on the long side need to be careful to avoid catching the proverbial falling knife. To compound matters, the sharp drop in Grab share price has led to a slew of class action lawsuits against the Singapore-based company.

In early March and April 2022, Grab faced two class action suits from a “class of persons who allegedly suffered damages as a result of alleged misstatements and omissions” in the SEC filings by Grab. Since then, there were …

NDP Special Offer! When SPH shareholders approved the acquisition by Cuscaden Peak on 22 March 2022, the writing was on the wall that SPH REIT would be the next to be acquired. Indeed, the consortium subsequently announced the chain offer of SPH REIT at $0.9640 per unit on 29 April 2022. Should unitholders accept, reject or run for their lives?

Cuscaden Peak is a consortium that is made up of entities linked to Hotel Properties (40%), CapitaLand Group (30%) and Mapletree Investments (30%). Given that CapitaLand and Mapletree are majority-controlled by Temasek Holdings and are sponsors of S-REITs, what is the possibility of the assets of SPH REIT being injected into MPACT or CICT? In life, never say never. After all, the S-REIT sector is undergoing a wave of consolidation post-pandemic.

Before we talk about life after the chain offer, let’s take a look at the unfolding chain offer. It should be noted that after adjusting for the 1QFY2022 and 2QFY2022 distributions, the offer price is actually $0.9372 per unit. At the point of writing, SPH REIT unit price is being traded at $0.945. In this regard, some unitholders may feel that they were given a raw deal. One member of SG Wealth Builder even enquired if a delisting is on the cards.

In this article, I will share my opinion on the chain offer and provide my assessment the possibility of SPH REIT being delisted from SGX. Before proceeding, investors should be aware that cash offer and delisting requirements come under two different rules – the former falls under Singapore Code on Take-Overs and Mergers while the latter falls under Section 295A(1) of the Securities and Futures Act 2001 of Singapore.

As at 1 June 2022, Cuscaden Peak had already obtained 51.96% of the total SPH REIT units, …

NDP Special Offer! Since the start of the year, stock market sentiments have been pretty much bearish. The US Federal interest rate hikes, combined with the Russia-Ukraine conflict, have created much uncertainties for the market. For this reason, it is not surprising that the unit price of Keppel DC REIT (SGX: AJBU) turned sluggish, falling by 17% year-to-date. Several members of SG Wealth Builder have written to express their concerns on the falling Keppel DC REIT unit price.

From $3.00 in January 2021 to the current $2.05, the correction in Keppel DC REIT unit price has lasted for more than a year. As the plunge started before the events unfolded in 2022, the drop is indeed puzzling. In this regard, unitholders have every reason to be concerned. Some of them are also wondering if it is worthwhile to continue holding the stock. Although I am not vested in this counter and could not advise members or readers on the course of actions for their investments, I would like to share my investment approach for S-REITs.

Currently, I am vested in another S-REIT, Mapletree Logistics Trust. I entered at $1.96 in last year. Like Keppel DC REIT, Mapletree Logistics Trust has been in a severe bout of correction mode since last year, falling by 11.7% year-to-date. Hence, the predicament faced by Keppel DC REIT investors is not actually unique.

Notwithstanding the paper loss, I am not losing sleep because I invested in Mapletree Logistics Trust primarily for the long-term due to its stable distributions, which are paid on a quarterly basis. For me, Mapletree Logistics Trust is part of my retirement portfolio and I see the dips in prices as opportunities for accumulation.

My opinion is that those who had bought this counter should not be too focused over the capital …

Being the top dog in the aviation industry, SIA (SGX: C6L) is one of the leading lights of SGX. As the world emerges from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic, how will SIA share price (SGX: C6L) unravel in the coming months? To make money from stocks, it is crucial to buy low and sell high. In that perspective, I would like to share my insights on whether the current SIA share price is a good entry point.

My last article on SIA share price (SGX: C6L) was on 6 February 2022. In that article, I predicted SIA share price to be trading between the $6 to $7 bandwidths in 2022. So far, the counter is still some way off the levels that I have forecasted. However, it should be noted that the article was written before the implosion of the Russian-Ukraine war, the US interest rate hikes and the COVID-19 lockdowns in China. Given the dramatic change in the operating climate, let’s take a look whether my original thesis still stands.

Chart: BullionStar

Due to the countless twists and turns of the pandemic saga, analysing the outlook of SIA share price is always a tricky business. But one thing I think I got it right is the close correlation of SIA share price with the oil price movements. Looking at the above chart, we can see that crude oil price peaked at USD126.86 per barrel on 8 March 2022. On that day, SIA share price crashed to a low of $4.87 from $5.40 on 18 February 2022. Prior to the hit from oil prices, SIA share price had been on a roll as Singapore announced a slew of public health measure relaxations aimed at opening up the borders.

Needless to say, the spike in crude oil price was due …

From hero to zero, Alibaba founder Jack Ma’s fall from grace has been nothing short of spectacular. In October 2020, Jack Ma, blasted Chinese financial regulators for stifling innovation at the Bund Summit in Shanghai. The criticism did not go down well with the Chinese authorities who subsequently launched a slew of regulatory crackdowns targeting Chinese tech stocks. Since then, Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988) had endured a torrid run.

The collapse of Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988) has caused plenty of heart pains for investors. Numerous investors had entered this counter when Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988) was trading between HK$150 to HK$298. Given that Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988) is currently trading at about HK$80 bandwidth, the rout had been pretty devastating for investors. The question now is whether recovery is in sight for Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988).

Many investors had been buying on the dip – buying more shares as Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988) continues to plunge. Although such strategy is not unsound, many investors are starting to panic as there is no sign of bottoming of share price. And what if the end-point for Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988) is HK$1? That would be an absolute nightmare!

The prevailing negative sentiments on Chinese tech stocks are driven mainly by macroeconomic growth of China, geopolitical concerns and regulatory clampdowns. As such, business fundamentals are completely irrelevant for Chinese tech stocks like Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988). From this perspective, recovery of Chinese tech stocks will depend largely on these factors.

Alibaba share price to surge ten-fold in value?

Alibaba share price in wonderland with Temasek Holdings

Dark side of Alibaba Group

In recent days, Alibaba share price (HKEX: 9988) has stabilized somewhat after reports of Chinese’s intentions to roll out policies to support the economy …

My last update on Mapletree Logistics Trust (MLT) unit price (SGX: M44U) was in January 2022. Since then, the counter went through some volatility, falling from $1.78 to a low of $1.69 in end of January 2022 and then surge to a high of $1.88 in early April before falling to the current $1.68. As a unitholder, the volatility of MLT unit price (SGX: M44U) is certainly unsettling, at least for me. What could be the reason for the trend of MLT unit price (SGX: M44U)?

For background, the principal activity of MLT is to invest in a diversified portfolio of logistics real estate in Asia Pacific with the aim of providing its unitholders with a stable distribution stream. As at 31 March 2022, the Group’s portfolio had grown to a portfolio of 183 properties, comprising 53 properties in Singapore, 9 in Hong Kong SAR, 42 in China, 19 in Japan, 19 in South Korea, 13 in Australia, 16 in Malaysia, 10 in Vietnam and 2 in India. The total value of assets under management is $13.1 billion.

The recent correction of MLT unit price (SGX: M44U) was partially attributed to the counter being ex-dividend on 9 May 2022. The S-REIT announced distribution per unit (DPU) of 2.268 cents for quarter ended 31 March 2022. This was an increase from the 2.161 cents distributed in 31 March 2021. For 12 months ended 31 March 2022, the full-year DPU was 8.787 cents.

The current MLT unit price is actually very attractive in terms of accumulation. Assuming the full-year DPU remains stagnant at 8.787 cents and assuming that you bought at the current $1.66, the annual dividend yield should be about 5.3%, which is much higher than bank saving rates. In this regard, the falling MLT unit price (SGX: M44U) provides …

On 5^th of May 2022, Dow Jones crashed 1063 points amid concerns of recession and surging global inflations. The following day, the Straits Times Index (STI) suffered a rout. In the sea of red, the bullish form of AEM share price stood out. At one point, AEM share price surged 2.5%, making it the top gainer in SGX. However, by the end of the trading day, the counter surrendered all the gains and fizzled out.

The volatile form of AEM share price came on the back on a solid first quarter financial update for FY2022, which saw the semiconductor test equipment manufacturer posting its highest quarterly revenue and profit before tax in its history. Net profit rocketed more than three-fold to smash a high of $40.8 million while revenue hit $262 million.

Previously, I wrote that AEM may become a $1 billion revenue company. On the basis of the quarterly performance, that day will come sooner than I expect. In fact, I would have expected AEM share price to breeze past the $5.00 mark on 6^th May 2022. If not for the overall stock market carnage, the stellar first quarter performance would have turbocharged AEM share price to high heavens.

AEM share price in holy grail with Temasek

AEM share price in $1 billion dream

AEM share price in perfect storm

AEM share price to jump 100% with new patent?

The first quarter performance is critical as it sets the stage for subsequent quarterly performances. In my view, the result validated the assumption on the volume ramp up from Intel and provided a good basis for my hypothesis of a $100 million net profit in FY2022. If the Group could perform like this for the subsequent quarters, then full-year net profit may possibly hit $160 million. If …

Is Xiaomi share price (HKEX: 1810) at a good entry level now? My last coverage on Chinese tech stocks (Alibaba HKEX: 9988) was in February 2021. Back then, Chinese tech stocks were embroiled in a slew of regulatory headwinds following Jack Ma’s epic criticism against the regulators’ stifling innovation of the financial system. That action triggered an unprecedented storm that saw aggressive regulatory clamp downs on Chinese tech stocks.

Obviously, nobody in his right mind would have predicted the storm to last for two years. During this period, it is understandable that many investors are depressed after seeing their investments evaporated with the meltdown of Chinese tech stocks. Against this backdrop, many investors must be praying fervently for light at end of the tunnel. Recently, an SG Wealth Builder Lifetime Member requested for the coverage on one of the Chinese tech stocks: Xiaomi share price (HKEX: 1810), which I will duly oblige.

Admittedly, I have not invested in foreign stocks before, much less Chinese tech stocks. However, I have been watching the unfolding of the rout of Chinese tech stocks for the past two years. Like many Chinese tech stocks, Xiaomi share price (HKEX: 1810) had suffered huge carnage due to the crisis of confidence in Chinese tech stocks. However, recent announcement by the Chinese authorities to roll out policies to support the economy and stabilize consumption gave many investors some glimmers of hope that the slew of regulatory clamp downs may be coming to an end (finally)!

In investing, it is important to buy low and sell high. Xiaomi share price (HKEX: 1810) has plunged from an all-time high of HK$33.20 on 31 December 2020 to the current HK$11.70. This represents a staggering 45% correction from the all-time high. Although Xiaomi share price (HKEX: 1810) is at …

At the request of an SG Wealth Builder Lifetime Member, I am covering EngGro share price in this article. With a market capitalization of just $157.9 million, this is a very small cap stock in SGX. Admittedly, prior to the request from my member, I have not heard of this company before. I believe I am not alone as this counter falls under the radar of many analysts. However, a closer look on this company reveals some interesting findings.

EnGro’s history dates back to 1973 when it was formed as a tri-partite joint venture among SsangYong Cement Industrial Co. Ltd (South Korea), DBS Bank, and Afro-Asia Shipping Co. Listed on the SGX main board since 1983, the company was previously known as SsangYong Cement (Singapore) Pte Ltd. However, SsangYong Cement exited the business in 2005 and the company was renamed as EnGro Corporation Limited.

As of 15 March 2022, the largest shareholder of EnGro is Dr Chua Thian Poh, Executive Chairman of Ho Bee Land, which controls Afro-Asia International Enterprises Pte Limited. Dr Chua holds 38.68% stake in EnGro. Ho Bee Land is known for being the developer of Sentosa Cove.

To be specific, EnGro is provider of building materials, specializing in specialty cement and high-performance concrete supply. Within SGX, its competitor is Pan-United Corporation. However, unlike Pan-United Corporation, EnGro has [This is a premium article. The rest of the content is blocked and can be accessible by SG Wealth Builder Members only. To read the full content, please sign up as member.]

This will be my first coverage of Singtel share price in 2022. My last coverage on this counter was on 31 December 2021. Since then, Singtel share price has surged from $2.30 to $2.65 at the point of writing. Year-to-date, Singtel share price has increased about 14%. Is this yet another false dawn or light at end of tunnel for the leading regional telco?

Whilst it may be too early for investors to pop the champagne, the operating climate has certainly improved significantly as compared to 2021. The lifting of COVID-19 restrictions in March had pushed Singtel share price to an almost 2-year high as the incoming volume of tourists should increase revenue for the Singapore Consumer business. Nonetheless, the positive effect should kick in from the new financial year onwards (Singtel’s financial year ends on March).

The coming weeks should see plenty of volatility for Singtel share price as the telco will release its full-year financial result. Based on the results of the past three quarters, the full-year result should be stellar, thereby providing a tailwind for Singtel share price. To put the icing on the cake, Singapore announced further relaxation of public health measures on 22 April 2022. Arising from this, number of tourists should spike in the coming months, providing another catalyst driver for Singtel share price.

Singtel’s sprawling telco businesses are prone to the impact of the pandemic as a significant portion of the Group’s revenue is derived from roaming revenue from tourists. Hence, the lifting of border restrictions should benefit Singtel’s Singapore Consumer business. Furthermore, its regional associate’s businesses will also benefit from cross border travel as Southeast Asia countries start to ease borders’ restrictions too. Thailand, in which Singtel has operations, has also announced easing of borders’ restrictions on 22 April 2022 too.

Singtel …

What a supersonic form! Investors must buckle their seat belts and brace for the wildest ride of their lives. AEM share price went on a rampage following a series of share purchases by its biggest shareholder – Temasek Holdings. Temasek’s entry in August 2021 saw the sovereign wealth fund taking an initial stake of 9.5% in AEM. Within six months, Temasek increased its stake to 12.08% following a slew of share purchases in 2022. What is the game plan that Temasek has in mind for AEM?

Whilst Temasek’s strategic investment in AEM may seem like a no-brainer, the narrative may not be so straightforward, at least for Temasek. To put things into perspective, Temasek used to have two major assets in the semiconductor industry – Chartered Semiconductor and Stats Chippac. Chartered Semiconductor used to be the world’s third largest chipmaker while Stats Chippac was the biggest Southeast Asia assembly and chip-testing company. Despite so, Temasek had disposed them during the previous downturn of the semiconductor industry.

Chartered Semiconductor was sold to Abu Dhabi in 2009 while Stats Chippac was sold to China’s JCET in 2015. Both companies were delisted from SGX following the buyouts. The rationale for Temasek to sell was understandable as both assets were struggling to turn around for years. Back then, stiff competition from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) had led to razor-thin margins for chips. To compound matters, the higher manufacturing costs also mean that it is difficult to sustain operations in Singapore.

Given the notorious boom and bust cycle of the semiconductor industry, what could have caused Temasek to turn its head and invest in AEM? Surely, the motivating factors must be compelling enough after the experiences of Chartered Semiconductor and Stats Chippac. In this article, I will share my thoughts on the plausible …