Thursday, May 27, 2010

Top-Performing Chinese ADRs (BIDU, SPRD, SIMO, ZNH, PTI, CEA, OIIM, EDU)

DR ISSUESYMBOLLASTYTD %CHGINDUSTRYCOUNTRY
Samson Oil and GasSSN0.57138%Oil & Gas ProducersAustralia
AmarinAMRN2.8297%Pharma. & Biotech.United Kingdom
GentiumGENT4.2689%Pharma. & Biotech.Italy
TrintechTTPA5.9882%Software&ComputerSvcIreland
BaiduBIDU72.4576%Software&ComputerSvcChina
Spreadtrum CommunicationsSPRD9.4874%Tech.Hardware&Equip.China
Trinity BiotechTRIB6.2154%HealthCareEquip.&SerIreland
Silicon Motion TechnologySIMO5.252%Tech.Hardware&Equip.Taiwan
Royal Bank of ScotlandRBS13.1740%BanksUnited Kingdom
China Southern AirlinesZNH21.4839%Travel & LeisureChina
Internet Initiative JapanIIJI6.2939%Software&ComputerSvcJapan
Patni Computer SystemsPTI27.8236%Software&ComputerSvcIndia
City Telecom (H.K.)CTEL13.0134%Fixed Line Telecom.Hong Kong
China Eastern AirlinesCEA46.3232%Travel & LeisureChina
HitachiHIT39.9530%Electron.&ElectricEqJapan
Babcock & Brown AirFLY11.528%IndustrialTransport.Ireland
ICONICLR27.426%HealthCareEquip.&SerIreland
ARMARMH10.5423%Tech.Hardware&Equip.United Kingdom
O2Micro InternationalOIIM6.320%Tech.Hardware&Equip.Hong Kong
New Oriental Education & TechnologyEDU91.0120%General RetailersChina
Source: BNYADR.com

The discrepancy comes from the fact that there can be large differences between the A-Share indexes which trade in renminbi, the H-Share securities of the same companies traded in Hong Kong dollars and the Chinese companies which have primary listing in the U.S.. We focus largely on the ADRs considering that the A-Shares are largely out of reach for most U.S.-based investors, but there is an exception -- the Morgan Stanley A-Share Fund (NYSE: CAF).

Administered by Morgan Stanley, this fund gives you a unique opportunity to participate in the A-Share market that often moves quite a bit differently than Hong Kong and Taiwan. With valuations depressed due to the monetary tightening, considering CAF may be a good option here, especially given that it trades 4% below its net asset value. The holdings of the fund simply cannot be purchased in any other form.

CAF TOP 10 HOLDINGSVALUE% PORTFOLIO
Shanxi Xishan Coal And Electricity Power $35.79M6.74%
Citic Securities Co $30.42M5.73%
Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Co., Ltd. $26.04M4.90%
Bank of Beijing $23.86M4.49%
Gree Electric Appliances $21.75M4.10%
China Merchants Property Development Co. $18.37M3.46%
Pingdingshan Tianan Coal $18.26M3.44%
ANF $18.09M3.41%
Changsha Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science $18.05M3.40%
Wuliangye Yibin Co.,ltd. $18.05M3.40%

Looking at our ADR ranking, there is little more to say about Baidu.com (NASDAQ: BIDU) than that it is eatingGoogle’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) lunch in China. The recent 10:1 stock split makes the shares more accessible, but it still seems that it has run too high too fast. The fact that the stock has refused to correct along with other Chinese stocks also shows that it is too early to talk about economic cyclicality for the company.

Both Spreadtrum Communications (NASDAQ: SPRD) and Silicon Motion Technology (NASDAQ: SIMO) are small cap fabless communications chip makers. There is nothing competitive about them other than lower costs.

Both China Southern Airlines (NYSE: ZNH) and China Eastern Airlines (NYSE: CEA) have done extremely well despite high oil prices in 2010. Given the breakneck economic growth in China, both airlines are geared towards guaranteed air traffic growth. Fuel prices are regulated, so high oil prices do not necessarily have direct pass-through in the Chinese economy. Domestic air travel is regulated too, and it is unlikely that disruptive regulation will appear anytime soon to drive the airlines out of business. A correction in both of these stocks is an opportunity to build positions -- a big contrast with U.S. airlines that are burdened with overcapacity and the simple inability to earn their cost of capital over time.

O2 Micro International (NASDAQ: OIIM) is an IC power management maker for the PC and TV industry. The company is heavily cyclical, and right now we are in the upswing for its industry. In a strange way, it is a beneficiary of the Chinese demand for consumer electronics, which also makes it a domestic demand play.

Finally, New Oriental Education (NYSE: EDU) is high-growth outfit centering on language training and test preparation in China. Sales are growing in the 50% to 60% range and are not expected to slow in the next couple of years.

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