Iskandar/ Rowsley

Iskandar: continues to receive growing interest. JPM led a group of 25 investors from SG and KL for a tour of Iskandar, Johor property sites last wk, along with presentations by Iskandar Invmt Bhd (Khazanah -owned) , as well as Johor property stocks (ie. UEM Land, Sunway, WCT). JPM observes, the marketing trip points to strong, rising interest in Msia property plays (ex-REITs) given the segment's steep underperformance despite decent underlying on the ground fundamental , in lieu of the election overhang risk. JPM reiterates its preferred plays for the Iskandar theme via smaller players. In Spore, Rowsley is one of the few stocks with potential Iskandar exposure, through its proposed takeover of a Msian architect firm and Iskandar land acquisition via an issue of up to $581m in new shares (at issue price of $0.15/sh). Recall, the devt is slated for a $3b integrated mixed-use township comprising apts, malls, convention centres, yielding more than 10m sf of GFA. The stock remains a concept play, with no earnings to speak of, and trading at 6.9x P/B.