Chapter 634
Listing
Chapter 634 Listing (4k)
Silicon Carbon Group and Lingang have been a model of win-win cooperation over the past few years.
The former helped the latter become a domestic new energy industry development base, while the latter effectively guaranteed the smooth operation of the former, leading to Zhu Zehui's promotion and new appointment. This was actually a relatively minor aspect of the win-win situation.
It is precisely because of this, and because the Carbon Silicon Group has become a benchmark in the mid-to-high-end of the new energy and even the domestic automobile industry, and has the potential for further rapid development, that Zhu Zehui had to give some warnings on this day.
Carbon Silicon Group was on the verge of a successful IPO, but before Mr. Yu even landed in Hong Kong, Jinma Shares suffered a major setback. During his press conference, he shorted Steinhoff, effectively turning the company into a junk stock…
Once the silicon carbon group passed the double review, another wave of attacks swept through the market, causing the thirteen listed companies targeted to collectively decline, plunging the three major sectors into uncertainty.
Zhu Zehui can't even think about it anymore. If the Silicon Carbon Group is officially listed, will there be another listed company that will be sacrificed by President Yu?
How can he be so good at talking nonsense?
Zhu Zehui felt half resentment and half amazement. He truly lived up to his reputation as a "century-level short seller"—no wonder he attracted so many investigations and lawsuits…
However, this really needs to be restrained. Ever since the mountain peak was exposed, related questions have been raised at press conferences in Beijing, and the answer received was that it was done in accordance with laws and regulations.
Although the overall size of the listed companies involved this time was not large, after receiving a call from the city, Zhu Zehui felt that President Yu's short-selling talent needed to be tempered, and that they shouldn't test the true value of this big short seller anymore, since everyone already knew...
After ending his call with Director Zhu, Yu Xing pondered for a while and felt that the pressure was not too bad.
He then relayed the contents to Liu Wanying.
“It’s only because you’ve taken silicon carbon to this level that you’ve said something harsh, otherwise you would have said it already,” Liu Wanying said as her first reaction, then added, “How do you talk about politics like this?”
Yu Xing smiled and said, "I don't know what others say, but I think that far is near."
If we're really going to get to the bottom of this, he's the easiest to talk about. Even with carbon and silicon reaching this level, you can't avoid contact. But even if you seem to have found the right person and get close, things could change at any time. It's better to keep your distance and seek stability.
Seeing that Xiao Ying was guessing riddles, he brought up another matter: "I'm going back to Lingang next week, you should stay here for now."
Liu Wanying looked up: "Then when do you think I should go back?"
“Although I think things are as they are now, and it’s fine as they are,” Yu Xing said thoughtfully, “it’s better to go back before the New Year. It won’t make a difference if you stay in Hong Kong for a while and see what the situation is like for silicon carbide’s listing.”
Although it is going public, silicon carbon is not expected to perform well on the ChiNext board and also faces retaliation from short sellers.
Liu Wanying did not object and nodded gently: "Then please take the gift back for me, so that people won't think I've just run away."
She shook her head again: "Once the news of Guo Shanfeng was released, my brother thought I had flown abroad."
Aside from the media, almost no one asked about Hongjun, because it was a foregone conclusion that he would be involved. But just like Yu Xing's nonchalant attitude in front of the camera, it seemed that people in China didn't care much either, which gave him peace of mind.
Ultimately, it was a combination of factors that allowed it to successfully withstand the pressure: the development of the new energy industry led by the silicon carbon group, the legitimate reason for its success in overcoming all obstacles, the expansion of the mobile internet, including its location in Shanghai and its coverage of the Yangtze River Delta. He didn't know which factor was primary or secondary; he only knew what the attitude he felt was like.
Yu Xing talked about Lingang and today's deliberations.
Liu Wanying listened quietly, and finally said with apology and self-reproach, "In the end, I've dragged you into this mess."
“This isn’t called a whirlpool, it’s called turning a slacker into a regular army,” Yu Xing laughed. “The hidden mountain peaks are venomous snakes, king cobras, while the visible mountain peaks are one after another.”
Liu Wanying shook her head, not dwelling on such emotions. After looking at the situation of US stocks, she concluded: "Although the Thirteen Insurance Groups are all falling, it's not too bad. The worst performer, Tableau, doesn't look like it will fall by more than 10%. This time, we really need to look at the fundamentals and wait for their own earnings reports."
Strictly speaking, this decline in the three major sectors was not an official action by Guoshanfeng, but rather the spread of the influence of Yu Xing's remarks.
Yu Xing did not expose the fraud or make any accusations. He just cautiously shared his views in the interview. However, there were three factors: the influence of the spread of public opinion, the existence of market observations, and the fact that Tableau itself jumped out and poked itself in the spotlight.
Ultimately, this led to a certain degree of panic.
Whether the rain turns to sunshine or the rain intensifies, ultimately, performance will speak for itself.
Liu Wanying believes that the exact outcome will likely be revealed when the financial reports are released at the end of the month or the beginning of the next month, and the situation may improve after the initial panic tomorrow.
Unexpectedly, at 4 a.m. in Hong Kong, just one hour before the US market closed, Tableau suddenly released its full-year and Q4 2015 financial report and directly lowered its 2016 performance guidance, igniting the market.
Its revenue reached $2.028 million in Q4 2015, barely exceeding market expectations, but the growth rate slowed significantly compared to the first three quarters. The loss was a record high, with a loss per share of $0.57. The non-GAAP earnings per share were higher than expected but declined for two consecutive quarters.
Furthermore, customer growth has slowed significantly, and customer acquisition costs have risen considerably. The only bright spot may be the relatively good performance in the high-end market.
However, the biggest problem is that its full-year 2016 and Q1 guidance was far below market expectations, indicating that Q1 revenue growth would drop to around 25%, nearly halved from 42% in Q4 2015.
The full-year growth rate is expected to be only 27%, far below the average expected 40% for the SaaS industry.
At the same time, Tableau explicitly admitted that it would continue to lose money in Q1, breaking its previous promise that it would become profitable soon.
In short, the slowdown in industry development and the intensification of competition have directly shattered the myth of high growth for SaaS.
Tableau did not commit fraud; it simply shattered the bubble of external optimism and its own story, which is largely consistent with the view expressed by Yu Xing in an interview.
Wall Street's expectations for Tableau and SaaS were far from what they expected, and they voted with their feet when they saw its true colors.
In the hour before the market closed, Tableau's stock price crashed, plunging another 29% and dragging down the entire SaaS sector.
Tableau's CEO held a conference call after the market closed, and when questioned, he admitted: "The competitive environment has indeed become more crowded and difficult. The high-end market is being eroded by Oracle and SAP, while the low-end market is being impacted by Microsoft's free products."
It started falling before the market opened, then plunged at the close, and continued to fall after the market closed.
Tableau's stock price plummeted from $82.6 to $47.08 that day, marking the largest single-day drop in the history of US SaaS stocks. Trading volume reached 24% of the outstanding shares, and the company's market capitalization evaporated by more than $50 billion, shrinking from $110 billion to $60 billion.
The Wall Street Journal quickly drafted a headline, this time titled—"The King of Short Sellers is Right Again."
The short sellers are right again, which means listed companies are in trouble.
The SaaS sector saw the largest decline, with wearable devices and gene sequencing also experiencing increased losses in the final trading hours and after hours, as investors feared a repeat of the Tableau situation.
According to incomplete statistics, the combined market value lost by several listed companies this time exceeds US$200 billion, and there will obviously be a chain reaction within the sector in the future.
Xu Xin, who was in Shanghai, saw this scene of US stocks after waking up. She felt itchy and regretful at the same time. Such a drop... if Guo Shanfeng hadn't been exposed, it would have been a lot of money!
The content that Mr. Yu clearly mentioned in the interview seems to indicate that he did not short these companies.
This also proves that Guoshanfeng is not only capable of targeting listed companies that commit fraud, but its research into multiple markets is also unique.
Xu Xin's mind raced with various thoughts as she kept an eye on the latest news from Hong Kong. Aside from the gossip, she didn't see anything particularly unusual. However, she did come across a report related to herself. Hong Kong media had compiled a list of suspected members of the "Over the Peak" group, and Xu Xin of Today Capital was prominently listed among them.
She looked and looked, feeling frustrated. She was definitely not right, but her husband had previously been determined to short sell, and now he had gone to Hong Kong to chase after celebrities. How could she explain herself?
It's better to remain silent, better to remain silent.
Xu Xin was in a bad mood, so she simply took a car to Lingang, intending to see what carbon silicon looked like without its leader.
Around noon, she arrived at Lingang, entered the factory area by scanning her face, and felt that the busy atmosphere here was completely isolated from the outside world.
“That’s true. Short selling is short selling, and building cars is building cars.” Xu Xin muttered to herself upon seeing this. “The storms couldn’t get in anyway.”
Lingang is located in a remote area, and the car manufacturing by the Silicon Carbon Group is a real product. For ordinary consumers, as long as the car is of high quality and the price is attractive, what impact can public opinion have on suspicions of short sellers manipulating the market and insider trading?
Xu Xin ate lunch directly at the canteen of the Silicon Carbon Group. She felt that the storm was following President Yu. He went to Hong Kong, and the storm was in Hong Kong. Lingang was simply peaceful and quiet.
After finishing her meal, she briefly toured the Silicon Carbon Group, fulfilling her duty as a shareholder. Just as she was about to leave, she suddenly noticed an office sign.
—Guoshanfeng General Office.
Xu Xin was stunned.
She walked closer and looked at it carefully twice to make sure she wasn't mistaken. This office, located not far from the president's office of Silicon Carbon, had a sign that read "Over the Peak"!
"Mr. Hu, this...you guys..." Xu Xin stopped Hu Zhengnan, "Why did you put this up?!"
Hu Zhengnan was initially a little surprised, but seeing President Xu's reaction, he smiled and said, "Can't it be hung up? It seems that Zhang Yangxu had it arranged, saying that it would be used later. I don't know anything about this."
Xu Xin frowned: "Hang this sign here, like this, like this..."
She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but felt the shock was too great.
Hu Zhengnan smiled mysteriously: "President Xu, what do you mean? I don't understand this."
Xu Xin pushed open the office door. There was no one inside, but there were materials laid out, and upon closer inspection, they were marked with serial numbers.
Her curiosity exploded, and she turned to Hu Zhengnan, asking, "Can I go in and take a look?"
“Mr. Xu, I don’t know anything about your mountain crossing business,” Hu Zhengnan said, then added, “These are all publicly available materials, take a look.”
Xu Xin took a step before realizing what was happening, then turned around and glared at Hu Zhengnan.
Hu Zhengnan shrugged and said, "President Xu, you can stay here and work on your tasks. I'll get back to work."
Xu Xin watched helplessly as President Hu left, leaving her behind in the once mysterious Guoshanfeng office.
She pursed her lips, reached out and took out the document marked as No. 1. She found that it was a summary of "Fenzhong Media". First, there was the research report issued by Guo Shanfeng back then, followed by Fenzhong Media's stock price, public relations, public opinion and other reactions, and finally the recent situation of the entire industry.
Xu Xin was naturally very familiar with the case from back then. Looking up at the meaning represented by these serial numbers, she suddenly felt that this office was soaked in the tears of the listed company and was practically filled with the flames of its market value burning fiercely.
This is no longer an act, nor is there any need to act anymore. The murderer clearly wants to enjoy the crime he committed!
She put the first document back, reached out and picked through it, finding the old Alipay document from Alibaba, wanting to satisfy her long-standing curiosity.
Unfortunately, this document remains public information and does not disclose any inside details.
Xu Xin had just put the document back when she suddenly heard footsteps approaching from outside.
Soon, a young man walked into the office with some materials.
Xu Xin glanced at him briefly and guessed, "Are you Zhao Shuo?"
She had heard her husband mention that his previous research on Zotye was conducted by a young man who wanted to join a mountain-climbing company. He said the young man came from a consulting firm, was very capable, and had good ideas.
Zhao Shuo recognized Xu Xin and wasn't surprised that she knew him. He politely said, "Hello, Ms. Xu. Is there anything here that needs to be arranged?"
Xu Xin looked at the young man for two seconds: "What do I have to offer you for decorating?"
Zhao Shuo remained polite: "Won't President Xu be working here then?"
Xu Xin said irritably, "What am I supposed to do here!"
Zhao Shuo asked, half guessing, "Does President Xu work online?"
Xu Xin was slightly annoyed that someone she had never met before would say such a thing to her face. She said, "I am not from Guoshanfeng, and I do not work for Guoshanfeng!"
Zhao Shuo paused for a moment, then swallowed his words.
Xu Xin looked coldly at the young man's hesitation and said directly, "Speak if you have something to say."
Zhao Shuo said somewhat cautiously, "President Li said he wants to work here..."
Xu Xin: "..."
Seeing that President Xu remained silent, Zhao Shuo maintained the respect due to his suspected superior.
After a long pause, Xu Xin could only say, "I'm not a mountain climber."
Zhao Shuo nodded.
Seeing this, Xu Xin had no other choice but to turn around and leave.
Zhao Shuo escorted the man who appeared to be his superior to the door.
"What else do you mean by this office?" Xu Xin asked suddenly as she reached the door. "What did Zhang Yangxu say?"
Zhao Shuo thought for a moment and said, "President Zhang said that since it's already public, well, he didn't say anything else, just told me to take care of the arrangements. President Xu, since it's already public, it's already public."
Xu Xin felt that the second half of the sentence was like advice to herself; she wanted to get angry, but was powerless to change the situation.
She sighed; her reputation was probably ruined.
(End of this chapter)