• Home/
• Technology

David Fuller and Eoin Treacy's Comment of the Day
Category - Technology

A Legion of Day Traders Is Taking Over Korea's Stock Market

This article by Heejin Kim for Bloomberg may be of interest. Here is a section:

Known for their love of risk, individual investors appear to be changing the contours of South Korea’s broader market. They are the force behind the benchmark Kospi index’s 64% rebound from its March low -- the strongest performance in Asia in that period -- having bought a net 25.6 trillion won ($21.6
billion) worth of stocks since then even as foreign funds and institutional investors sold. In the U.S., the Robinhood craze means that retail investors now account for roughly 20% of equity trading, up from 15% historically, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analysis.

“Retail investors appear to be seeking short-term profits after hearing their next-door neighbors earned lots of money from stocks after the March selloff,” said You Seung-Min, chief strategist at Samsung Securities Co.

The activity of Korean short-term traders in September hasn’t been limited to typical darlings like preferred stocks or shares of healthcare firms. They have also dominated trading in blue-chip companies like Samsung Electronic Co., about 81% of value traded this month through Sept. 8, and SK Hynix Inc.,
almost 76%.

“Unlike previously, they are trading large-cap stocks as well because they believe some large-size firms may be able to make a huge profit amid the spread of the Covid-19,” You said.



Read entire article

Traders Are Getting Smarter About the Vaccine Race

This article by Max Nisen for Bloomberg may be of interest to subscribers. Here is a section:

It's not clear how big a deal this particular pause is. Trial halts aren’t uncommon or a sure sign of a significant problem. Health care news publication Stat reported Wednesday that the participant received the vaccine and not a placebo, but it's possible that the volunteer’s illness — reported to be a spine condition called transverse myelitis — is unrelated to the shot. They may have already had the condition, or this could simply prove to be a singular outlier. The range of possible outcomes includes everything from a quick restart to a longer delay that could create concern about vaccines that use similar technology, including an effort from Johnson & Johnson and Russia's already approved shot. With just one event, the former seems more likely than the latter, especially given the latest news from the FT on the trial’s possible quick resumption.

The pause may slow enrollment in AstraZeneca's trial if it restarts, and may affect other efforts. It may also incline companies and regulators to wait for a bit more safety data before approval. That's not such a bad thing if it builds confidence in the eventual result. Still, halting to track down an answer is the responsible move for volunteers, the company, and the vaccine race.

It’s clear that the world must proceed carefully in developing shots intended for millions. While approved vaccines are very safe and companies working on Covid-19 candidates have reported few red flags in small early tests, the human immune system is complicated and unusual reactions do occur. Only large-scale trials on a diverse population can determine whether a particular shot is safe for general use and differentiate outliers from deal-breakers. Big tests are especially crucial in a pandemic scenario with less time for early research.



Read entire article

Email of the day - on investment trusts investing in private equity

I don't know if it would help your subscriber who asked about private equity, but I wondered if he was aware that some investment trusts in the UK offer some exposure. For example, Scottish Mortgage has about 20% of its assets in unlisted companies. 

There are probably others. Consult the Investment Trust handbook.

(I should say I own shares in Scottish Mortgage)



Read entire article

Email of the day - on private equity growth opportunities

Recently Mr. Treacy mentioned that most of the growth and yield opportunities are currently in the Private Equity. I would appreciate Mr Treacy's view on UK tax efficient Venture Capital Trusts. I am considering them as they provide exposure to early stage companies and provide tax efficient investment. Does Mr. Treacy deem this a good vehicle or would he suggest any other investment instruments?



Read entire article

Tenth Annual Energy Paper

Thanks to a subscriber for this report from JPMorgan which may be of interest. Here is a section:

We expect some of the “base” decline from existing shale wells to be replaced by new wells; the harder question is by how much. Operating and development costs have declined, well productivity has improved and there are large sunk costs in Appalachia (i.e., lease agreement options) that may compel many producers to keep drilling irrespective of lifecycle economics. Furthermore, if the onshore shale boom fades, we might see a revival of US offshore oil & gas production in the Gulf of Mexico. US oil production is also very sensitive to price: $55-$65 oil prices could add 1-3 mm bpd to US production when compared with JP Morgan’s $40 base case WTI price forecast. Even so, the US may now be close to peak oil and natural gas production and peak energy independence given financial pressures on the shale industry, and environmental pressures discussed next.



Read entire article

Stupid 'Rich' Skew in Apple, Greed Breaks Things

This article from the BearTrapsReport may be of interest to subscribers. Here is a section:

Jan $180 Strike Calls costs $4
Jan $80 Strike Puts costs $1

*Both options are $50 out of the money, approx data, BUT it is nearly 3x more expensive to buy upside risk in AAPL equity. Downside protection normally costs more than upside risk participation, NOT today. What does this mean? One large buyer has made a colossal splash in the market and the scent of greed has drawn thousands of other market participants into the dangerous game. Several clients in our institutional chat on Bloomberg have cited SoftBank as the original size buyer. We have NO IDEA if this is true, just that highly credible clients have made this reference several times over the last week. It’s a high-stakes game of musical chairs, the ultimate greater fool theory moment. The colossal call buyer has thrown meat in the water and drawn in the sharks, but unfortunately thousands of Robinhood minnows at the same time. When the large players’ exit, the little guy and gal will be left holding the bag.

Apple closed near $130, while the cost of speculative upside calls is weighted heavily against the buyer. Someone must have reached out to Buffett today because he can make a fortune in selling $AAPL upside calls.



Read entire article

Rolls-Royce Disposal Raises Questions Over Balance Sheet

This note from Dow Jones may be of interest to subscribers. Here is a section:

Rolls-Royce's GBP2 billion disposal announcement is materially more than what the market had in mind, and may imply a lower need for fresh equity to repair its balance sheet, Credit Suisse says. This raises questions as to whether the company was waiting for things to improve before a rights issue or taking the risk of seeing things get worse, the Swiss bank says. The lack of visibility on the balance sheet rebuild, persistent volatility in forecasts and the unattractiveness of the underlying investment case mean the stock remains unappealing for many investors, CS says. The bank has an underperform rating on the stock, and lowers the target price to 200 pence, from 210 pence. Shares are down 9% at 219.40 pence.   



Read entire article

Wind Turbine Behemoth Plans for Future by Getting Into Hydrogen

This article by William Mathis and Laura Millan Lombrana for Bloomberg may be of interest to subscribers. Here is a section:

It could be a compelling model. Danish utility Orsted A/S is already exploring a number of hydrogen projects for its wind farms and Royal Dutch Shell Plc plans to produce the gas from a park it’s going to build off the Dutch coast. Making and selling hydrogen could provide a new source of revenue for wind projects that would offset the risk in the sometimes volatile electricity market.

No one before has used wind power alone, without a grid connection, to produce hydrogen, Nauen said. It’s a project that will provide insight that could be crucial to scaling up the technology to much larger turbines and wind farms both on land and at sea.

Earlier this year, Siemens Gamesa announced plans to build a 14-megawatt offshore turbine with a rotor diameter of 222 meters (728 feet), a few meters larger than the previous record.

The company expects to conduct testing at the hydrogen pilot from October to December and then start hydrogen production in January. A Danish hydrogen fuel company called Everfuel will distribute the gas for vehicles including taxis and buses to use in Copenhagen.

European governments aim to spend billions of dollars to help nurture domestic industries to produce hydrogen. The funding could help scale production and bring down costs.



Read entire article

Facebook Hits Record as Analysts See Opportunity From Shop

This article by Ryan Vlastelica for Bloomberg may be of interest. Here is a section:

Facebook analysts were positive after the social-media company added a new shopping section, called Facebook Shop, to its main app, seeing strong e-commerce growth potential.

JMP Securities (market outperform, PT $305)

There are “multiple catalysts” for Facebook, and e-commerce “can be a significant opportunity”
There is “a clear line of sight to monetizing Shop”
While advertising should remain Facebook’s focus, the growth in e-commerce means Facebook “can generate greater product discovery” for small and mid-sized businesses relative to other channels

Stifel (buy, PT $290)

The accelerated roll-out of the service “suggests the benefits to growth could be evident as early as 2021,” and Facebook waiving selling fees in 2020 “could accelerate the adoption of these tools”
Over the long term, Facebook’s e-commerce opportunity “should come more from increased adoption of digital ads” by small and mid-sized businesses than transaction fees

Shares up as much as 2.86%, the stock has nearly doubled off a March low, and it is trading at a record



Read entire article

Email of the day on electric vehicles.

I really love your audio comments every day and I think they are very useful. Commenting on the EV mania that is on lately...I don't understand why people are so crazy about tesla enc... at the moment the batteries don't last for a long time and when an EV car catches fire, this fire is unstoppable, a safety problem where nobody ever talks about. On top of that, the power grid of older city centers are not equipped to charge an EV... so where is the point in buying one?



Read entire article