SoftBank: more buybacks and less investing the answer for Son

{"text":[[{"start":12.15,"text":"A couple of months back Masayoshi Son asked his top team at SoftBank to slow their investment plans. "},{"start":18.079,"text":"No wonder. "},{"start":19.284,"text":"On Thursday, the Japanese technology investment group logged a record annual loss at its Vision Fund unit after technology shares worldwide collapsed. "},{"start":27.489,"text":"SoftBank founder Son, ever the optimist, nevertheless maintains the group deserves a higher valuation. "}],[{"start":34.59,"text":"SoftBank’s annual net loss totalled ¥1.7tn ($13bn), while its Vision Fund unit posted an investment loss of ¥3.5tn ($27bn) for the year to March. "},{"start":47.169000000000004,"text":"This marked the biggest annual loss for the group since Son shifted from telecoms to tech investment. "},{"start":52.312000000000005,"text":"An 80 per cent plunge in shares of South Korean ecommerce platform Coupang — of which SoftBank is the largest shareholder — since it listed last year, as well as a mark down on some of its unlisted asset valuations all played a part. "}],[{"start":65.23,"text":"Son deserves some credit for his effort at diversifying away from China as crackdowns intensified, down to around a tenth by portfolio worth. "},{"start":73.197,"text":"Part of that reduction is simply due to plummeting market valuations there. "}],[{"start":78.10000000000001,"text":"SoftBank now also has a cash position of $23bn and $50bn in capital for investments. "},{"start":84.90400000000001,"text":"Despite the loss from its Vision Fund, SoftBank still managed to complete a record number of public listings and divestments of its portfolio companies last year. "}],[{"start":94.19000000000001,"text":"Markets sensed what was coming. "},{"start":96.507,"text":"Its shares started falling well before results, down 8 per cent on Thursday alone. "},{"start":101.43700000000001,"text":"SoftBank has large exposure to the US equity sell-off as 43 per cent of its portfolio sits in the Americas. "},{"start":108.14200000000001,"text":"It also remains exposed to Chinese regulatory risk. "},{"start":111.60900000000001,"text":"E-commerce conglomerate Alibaba — whose shares have fallen two-thirds in the past year — still represents 22 per cent of its net asset value. "}],[{"start":119.88000000000001,"text":"That partly explains why SoftBank’s current $60bn market value is less than half the $150bn which is the group’s net asset value. "}],[{"start":129.48000000000002,"text":"Where Son sees value, investors perceive risk. "},{"start":133.07200000000003,"text":"Shares are down 47 per cent in the past year. "},{"start":136.23900000000003,"text":"Any meaningful rise in the stock price over the past two years has resulted from buybacks. "},{"start":141.169,"text":"Son would do well to continue his investing pause, and instead put money into those apparently cheap SoftBank shares. "}],[{"start":147.62,"text":""}]],"url":"https://creatives.ftacademy.cn/album/70909-1652366981.mp3"}