China's New Wave of Web Firms Finds a Home on the Nasdaq
A new breed of Chinese Internet company has taken a shine to the Nasdaq Stock Market, and U.S. investors have given the newcomers a warm welcome.
Unlike the first wave of arrivals from China, which was portals, this one comprises companies that derive their revenue from electronic commerce, online game playing, advertising, recruitment, travel and more. The new breed, tested by the collapse of the Internet bubble, are generally stronger financially. They are profitable, have viable business plans and are leaders in their sectors.
What's at the heart of the relationship with Nasdaq?
Making it to the U.S., home of the world's biggest stock market, carries a cachet for Chinese Internet start-ups, many of which have U.S.-educated executives at the helm. That alone should keep the listings coming. But more fundamentally, the companies get better valuations than they would in Hong Kong, investors who are more deeply versed in the Internet's nitty-gritty and peers that are among the world's biggest dot-coms, like Google and Monster Worldwide.
U.S. investors are better attuned to Internet businesses, so "as a company, you get a higher valuation. They have comparables and peers in the U.S. they can benchmark off," says Samir Mehta , a director at Lloyd George Asset Management in Hong Kong, who bought shares in newly listed 51job, a Chinese online-recruitment company.
Some of the Chinese companies that have gotten on Nasdaq weren't profitable when first listed. At present, listing rules in China's domestic markets require a three-year record of profitability. Together, these attractions are enough to offset concerns some Chinese companies have about the regulatory rigors of listing in the U.S.
For American investors, the growing number of Chinese listings gives a wider chance to bet on China's growth story without putting funds into international markets. And the Chinese Internet story has been marketed by the likes of Mary Meeker, Morgan Stanley's famous Internet analyst. Ms. Meeker, renowned for her bullish Internet calls, talked up China's Internet market in April, saying it was undervalued compared with its long-term potential.
The U.S. listings spell more cash for the Chinese companies selling shares, many of which were backed by venture-capital funds now looking to take out profits. 51job sold shares to U.S. investors at about 20 times next year's estimated earnings. By contrast, Tencent Holdings, China's biggest instant-messaging company, got 15.5 times estimated 2004 earnings when it sold shares on Hong Kong's stock exchange in June.
Four years ago, the first wave of China-related Internet companies flocked to market. Netease.com, Sohu.com and Sina collectively raked in $200 million selling shares within four months of one another, only to see the shares plummet as the Internet fanfare died. Since then, however, those stocks have turned around, thanks to revenue boosts from text messaging and online gaming.
Besides a history of volatility, there are a number of reasons to be cautious about investing in the new breed of Internet companies. Fewer than 10% of China's 1.3 billion people have Internet access, though in urban areas the number might be more. Still more worrisome for online businesses is low credit-card penetration and weak online-transactions systems.
So for this second wave of Chinese Internet stocks to attract investors, the companies have to have better track records, revenue streams and management.
"The market is not that bubbly," says Jay Chang, an equity analyst at Credit Suisse First Boston, which managed the share sale of Ctrip.com International, a Chinese hotel and airline-reservations site, last year. "You do have to be profitable."
Shanda Interactive Entertainment was profitable when it sold shares on Nasdaq in May, as was 51job. Both stocks have more than doubled since listing.
Still, not every offer is hot, suggesting the market is becoming more selective. China Finance Online, which saw its shares fall 10% on their debut last week, is below its offer price. China Finance sells real-time stock quotes, financial news and research reports over its Web site to subscribers -- a model some worry could be easy to replicate, and difficult to defend, in China's highly competitive Internet market.
More companies, such as travel site eLong and China's largest real-estate portal, Soufun.com, are getting ready to test the waters. Vincent Mo, chief executive of Soufun, says the U.S. market is his top choice for an IPO.
It is good to remember that the risks in Chinese Internet businesses in general are considerable -- as shown by Beijing's summer clampdown on text messaging to try to curb spam and pornography. Meanwhile, Chinese wireless company Linktone this week issued a profit warning, causing its shares to lose one-fifth of their value. 中国网络股在那斯达克再放光芒
新一代中国互联网企业在那斯达克市场大放光芒，美国投资者对他们的到来热烈欢迎。
第一批到那斯达克上市的中国互联网企业以门户网站为主，但最近这批企业的经营内容却包罗万象，涉及电子商务、互联网游戏、广告、招聘，旅游等多个领域。这批企业经受了互联网泡沫破灭的考验，财务状况比较扎实。他们实现了盈利，有可行的商业计划，并且是各自领域的佼佼者。
那么他们为什么选择在那斯达克上市呢？
由于美国拥有全球最大的股票市场，因此在美国上市能提升中国互联网新兴企业的知名度。在这些企业中，许多企业的高级管理人士都在美国接受过教育。但最根本的原因是，这些企业在美国上市能够获得比在香港上市更为理想的估价，美国投资者对互联网的本质有更深入的了解，而且 Google 和 Monster Worldwide 等全球最大的互联网企业都在美国上市。
Lloyd George Management 的主管萨米尔?梅塔 (Samir Mehta) 表示，美国投资者更了解互联网业务，因此，对于企业来讲，在美国上市能够获得更有利的估价。另外，有众多的同行在美国市场上市，中国的互联网企业能够以他们为参照来衡量自己的发展。梅塔买进了刚刚上市的中国招聘网站无忧工作网 (51job.com) 的股票。
一些中国互联网企业最初在那斯达克上市时并不盈利。与此形成对比的是，中国国内股市现在对企业上市做出了严格限定，企业必须做到连续 3 年盈利才有资格申请上市。总而言之，这些因素加起来足以抵消一些中国企业对美国加强上市公司监管力度的忧虑。
对于美国投资者来说，越来越多的中国企业来美国上市为他们提供了更多的通过股票分享中国经济增长的机会，这样他们就无需再到国际市场上去冒险。中国互联网股票受到了摩根士丹利 (Morgan Stanley) 知名的互联网分析师玛丽?米克 (Mary Meeker) 等人的追捧。以看好互联网股票而出名的米克在今年 4 月时对中国的互联网市场称赞有加。她认为，从长期发展潜力的角度来讲，人们对这个市场未给予足够的重视。
中国互联网企业在美国上市能够筹集到更多的资金。这些企业很多都借助了风险投资基金的支持，而这些基金现在都期待著享受到“分红”。无忧工作网在美国上市时的发行价约相当于其明年预期收益的 20 倍。相比而言，腾讯控股有限公司 (Tencent Holdings) 今年 6 月在香港上市时的募股价只是 2004 年预期收益的 15.5 倍。腾讯是中国最受欢迎的即时聊天工具的开发商。
四年前，第一批中国互联网类股涌向了那斯达克市场。网易 (Netease.com) 、搜狐 (Sohu.com) 、新浪 (Sina) 三家公司在前后 4 个月内相继上市，总共筹集了 2 亿美元。之后，随著互联网泡沫的破灭，他们的股价也大幅下滑。不过，随著短信和互联网游戏业务的蒸蒸日上，这几只股票也时来运转。
话说回来，在投资新一代中国互联网企业时应该谨慎行事。从第一批中国互联网类股的走势来看，它们都表现出大起大落的特性，除此之外，还有其他一些因素值得警惕，如中国的 13 亿人口中只有不到 10% 能够上网，尽管城市地区能够上网的比例可能高一些；另外，信用卡不普及和网上交易系统不够完善也在制约著电子商务的发展。
因此，第二批赴美上市的中国互联网类股若想吸引投资者，必须在运营记录、收入状况和管理方面有更出色的表现。
瑞士信贷第一波士顿 (CSFB) 的股票分析师 Jay Chang 表示，市场已没有了往日的狂热；要想吸引投资者，盈利是前提。 CSFB 是中国酒店及机票预定网站携程旅行网 (Ctrip.com International) 的上市经办人。
盛大互动娱乐有限公司 (Shanda Interactive Entertainment) 和无忧工作网在那斯达克上市前都是盈利的。两只股票自上市以来涨幅均超过了一倍。
但是，随著市场越来越挑剔，也有一些中国企业遭到了冷遇。例如，在上周的首日交易中，财富网络科技（北京）有限公司 (China Finance Online) 的股价下跌了 10% ，跌破了发行价。财富网络通过网站向订户提供股票的即时报价、金融消息和研究报告。一些人士担心，在中国高度竞争的互联网市场中，这种经营模式很容易被别人复制，而且权益很难得到维护。
越来越多的中国互联网企业，如旅游网站艺龙网信息技术（北京）有限公司 (eLong Inc.) 和中国最大的房地产门户网站搜房资讯控股有限公司 (Soufun.com) 对赴美上市都在跃跃欲试。搜房首席执行长莫天全 (Vincent Mo) 表示，美国市场是该公司首次公开募股的首选地。
但不应忘记的是，中国互联网业务总体上存在著巨大风险。例如，为遏制垃圾邮件和色情内容泛滥的局面，中国政府今年夏季对网站的短信业务进行了大力整顿。此外，企业的业绩消息也值得关注。比如，掌上灵通咨询有限公司 (Linktone Ltd.) 发布了收益预警，随后其股价缩水五分之一。
