Ernest Lim's investing blog

Unique insights into SGX small caps

market

Will Singapore stocks outperform U.S. stocks in 2022? (5 Jan 2022)

el15

Dear all With reference to my market outlook published on 7 Nov (see HERE) citing our Singapore market may face near term profit taking, STI dropped 201 points, or 6.6% from 3,242 on 5 Nov to close at 3,041 on 30 Nov. As we start 2022, various investment banks and research houses have put forth their views on how the various markets will perform. In this write-up, I will share how the markets have performed in 2021 and my market outlook in 2022.   How did the markets perform in 2021? Based on Table 1 below, it is evident that […]

STI at 3,051 – Presents some attractive opportunities (3 Oct 2021)

el15

Dear all With reference to my market outlook published on National Day (see HERE), both STI and Hang Seng have hit their highs on 10 Aug and 11 Aug respectively before dipping. Based on Table 1 below, S&P500, Hang Seng and STI have fallen 1.8%, 6.1% and 4.0% respectively since my writeup. Table 1: Indices’ performance since my last writeup Source: Ernest’s compilations Amid the recent weakness, you may be wondering whether it is a good time to accumulate on weakness. Before we get to this, let’s take a look at the indices’ charts.   S&P500 closed 4,357 Based on […]

S&P500 closed at record high! What should we do? Buy or sell? (9 Aug 2021)

el15

Dear all S&P500 has clocked its sixth consecutive month of gains in July 2021. This is the longest stretch since 2018. Furthermore, S&P500 has touched a record high to close at 4,437 on 6 Aug 2021. In the next 3 months, are markets poised for higher highs? Or should we be prudent and take some profit off the table first? Let’s take a look.   Ernest’s personal market observations a) Lack of catalysts to push the market higher Since Covid last year, markets, especially U.S. markets, have been able to push higher due partly to the combination of ultra-easy monetary policies; […]

STI – Will it head for new YTD high after S&P500 clocked its 7th consecutive day of rally? (6 Jul 2021)

el15

Dear all S&P500 and Nasdaq clinch fresh record highs last Friday with S&P500 clocking in seven consecutive days of gains in its longest winning streak since August 2020. Despite the roaring U.S. markets, Singapore Straits Times Index (“STI”) has slipped almost 100 points from its 2021 intraday high of 3,237 on 30 Apr 2021 to close 3,141 on 5 Jul 2021. Can STI exceed 3,237 for 2HFY2021? Most strategists believe so, as their year-end targets for STI are easily above 3,237. Let’s look at the possible reasons why analysts are positive on our Singapore market.   Reasons to be optimistic […]

Koda – Clear beneficiary of the surge in home furnishing spending trend (1 Jun 21)

el15

Since 20 Aug 2020, Avarga has more than doubled from $0.146 to close $0.305 on 1 Jun 2021. Avarga’s strength is likely attributed to its 69.7% stake in Taiga (Taiga is Canada’s largest wholesale distributor of building materials, such as lumber, panels, doors, engineered wood, roofing and others). Taiga’s business has been flourishing due to the strength in home furnishings and the housing market in Canada and US. By extension, Koda may be another proxy to benefit from the surge in home furnishing spending trend. It is noteworthy that Koda is an Original Design Manufacturer / Original Equipment Manufacturer to […]

Markets are “bubblish”, or aren’t they? (5 Apr 2021)

el15

Dear all Markets have been on a tear for the past five months. Since my write-up published on 1 Nov 2020, citing opportunities in our Singapore market (click HERE for the write-up), STI has soared 786 points, or 32.4% from 2,424 on 30 Oct 2020 to close 3,210 on 5 Apr 2021 (intra-day high today was 3,212). At the time of writing this, S&P500 futures are trading at 4,040, translating to around 24% gain over the same period. In fact, STI is the 2nd best performing market for 1Q2021 amongst 18 global benchmarks. Are markets in the midst of a […]

Tianneng Power trades at only 1/3 the value of its listed subsidiary Tianneng Battery! (8 Mar 2021)

el15

Dear all Tianneng Power (00819.HK) (“TP”) caught my attention recently. It has slumped 40.5% from an intraday high of HKD22.55 on 13 Jan 2021 to close HKD13.42 on 8 Mar 2021. At HKD13.42, it trades at only 1/3 the value of its listed subsidiary Tianneng Battery! Besides this sharp plunge and significant valuation gap, what else does TP have to catch my attention? Read on for more.   First up, a description of TP Quoting from its 1HFY20 results, TP was founded in 1986 and was listed Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited as the “First China […]

Singapore – Asia’s worst equity market YTD, any opportunities ahead? (29 Oct 20)

el15

Dear all It is less than a week from the U.S. election. U.S. markets are understandably jittery. S&P500 has fallen 316 points, or 8.9% from its intraday high of 3,550 on 12 Oct 2020 to touch an intraday low 3,234 on 30 Oct 20. In fact, S&P500 has tumbled 195 points or 5.6% this week. S&P500 closed at 3,270 on 30 Oct. The media has written extensively on the risks surrounding U.S. election since months ago hence the election event risk is hardly a new one. Examples of risks which media has written about is the possibility on contested election […]

Riverstone – Is the recent 32% decline justified? (12 Sep 2020)

el15

Riverstone recently caught my attention. It has tumbled approximately 32% from an intraday high of $4.90 on 7 Aug 2020 to close $3.33 on 11 Sep 2020. One client even thought that Riverstone has already undergone a bonus issue! The recent weakness is likely attributed to its co-founder selling 15.5m shares at $3.95 (Bloomberg cites a 90-day lockup on seller); the possibility of a vaccine resulting in demand for gloves and consequently their average selling price (“ASP”) falling off the cliff and some Malaysia investors selling shares to raise cash, as their moratorium on loan repayment ends (click HERE for […]

Recent weakness provides accumulation opportunities (9 Sep 20)

el15

Dear all Based on Table 1 below, U.S. indices have fallen between 5.5% – 10% from the close of 2 Sep to 8 Sep. Nasdaq led the decline with a 10% drop. These are interesting times indeed! Why do I say so? Read on below. Table 1: Performance of various indices from 2 Sep to *8 Sep 20 Source: Ernest’s compilations (*STI and Hang Seng are based on 9 Sep closing prices) In my personal opinion, this recent U.S. market weakness provides accumulation opportunities for the well prepared and for those who have been waiting on the side-lines to accumulate […]