Hualian Department Store announced trading suspension this morning, due to the proposed acquisition of commercial properties of its shareholder Hualian Group in a private offering. The company will convene a Board meeting to review the asset restructuring proposal within 30 days in accordance with the relevant laws. The trading will be resumed after the proposal is disclosed (December 15 the latest).
 
In our view, this event marks that Hualian Group has started the injection of its committed shopping centers. In our view,
l      Hefei Changjiang Road project (47,000 m², to be open next April~May) and Hefei Mengcheng Road project (48,000 m², construction in progress) would be the first injected in Hualian Department Store;
l      Beijing Yaojiayuan project CBD store (104,000 m² GFA) may not be injected in the short run, as the company has not got the land plot; and
l      the Group may also inject other related commercial properties in Hualian Department Store.
 
Hualian Department Store’s asset restructuring is largely in line, though we expect the injection to be made early next year. This indicates material progress in the company’s shift to the development of shopping centers. The company should have good long-term growth potential, given the endorsement of Hualian Group and Capitaland and the large room for the development of community-based shopping centers in China.
 
Risks:
1.      The rental rates and profitability of the company’s community-based shopping centers need to be tested by the market, amid slowing consumption. The incubation period would be longer.
2.      The restructuring timing is uncertain, as the restructuring proposal has not bee published.
 
We’ll further monitor the progress of asset restructuring, and will present our comments after the proposal details are available.
 
 
 
华联股份今天早上公告停牌,拟采取非公开发行股份的方式购买股东北京华联集团投资控股有限公司的商业地产类资产。公司计划在30 天内按照《上市公司重大资产重组管理办法》及其它相关规定，召开董事会审议资产重组预案，并将于预案披露后恢复交易（最迟12月15日）。
 
我们认为，此次公司资产重组停牌标志着华联集团已经启动所承诺的购物中心项目注入，按照各项目的进展情况来看，我们估计：
l 合肥长江路项目(4.7万平米，预计明年4-5月可开业)和合肥蒙城路项目（4.8万平米，目前在建）将会首先注入公司；
l 北京姚家园项目CBD店（建筑面积10.4万平米）由于仍在拿地阶段，短期内可能不会注入；
l 此外，不排除集团还有其他相关商业地产类资产会注入上市公司。
 
华联股份资产重组的推出基本符合我们的预期（我们原预计项目明年年初注入），这标志着公司向购物中心开发经营转型迈出了实质性的一步。我们认为，得益于华联集团和凯德置地的支持，以及国内社区型购物中心较大的发展空间，公司具备良好的长期发展潜力。
 
需要提示的风险是：由于消费增速放缓明显，公司社区型购物中心的租金水平和盈利能力将在一定时间内承受考验，培育期会相应延长；重组预案尚未正式推出，项目注入时点仍有一定不确定性。
 
我们会密切跟踪公司资产重组的进展，并会在预案细节公布后发出相关评论。
 
 
谢谢！

[此贴子已经被作者于2008-11-14 14:06:26编辑过]