HanKore

HanKore: Substantial shareholder Alan Wang, who runs the high profile fund Asdew Acquisitions, has increased his stakes from 12.06% to 13.05% via the purchase of 5.1m shares at an average price of $0.872 apiece from the open market. We highlight that Wang’s latest share purchase in the company could lend some confidence to shareholders, where the counter’s share price has been range bound ($0.815 to $0.93) over the last four months. Going forward, Maybank-KE maintains its long-term positive view as the house believes HanKore will benefit from China’s water-tariff revisions and industry consolidation. Its merger deal with China Everbright (CEI) is also pending shareholders’ approval in an EGM, likely in November. If materialised, it could be a game-changer. With the backing of CEI, the house expects HanKore to embark on an acquisition drive to position itself as a key player in the wastewater treatment (WWT) industry, and add 1m tpd of WWT capacity over FY15 and FY16. Maybank-KE has a Buy call on Hankore with a TP of $1.14.