Fake AI news

 Fake AI-generated news can have significant negative impacts on individuals and society. Some potential consequences include:

1. Misinformation: Fake AI news can spread false information, leading people to believe in events or statements that never occurred, causing confusion and misunderstandings.

2. Manipulation: Malicious actors can use fake AI news to manipulate public opinion, advance personal agendas, or influence political outcomes.

3. Trust Issues: The prevalence of AI-generated fake news erodes trust in media sources, making it harder for people to discern between genuine and false information.

4. Social Division: False stories created by AI can exacerbate societal divisions, promoting hatred, and intolerance among different groups.

5. Economic Impact: Misleading AI-generated news can affect stock markets, investment decisions, and business strategies, leading to financial losses.

6. Security Threats: Fake AI news may be used as a tool to spread disinformation about security threats, leading to panic and potential security risks.

Addressing this issue requires a combination of technological advancements to detect and prevent AI-generated fake news, media literacy education for the public, and responsible AI usage by developers and organizations to ensure the ethical deployment of AI technology.

KSS Review

https://kohls.gcs-web.com/static-files/69bb5ef4-94be-4108-9565-ea19aa1e76d8

Low valuation due to retail doom. Company is still making money and forecast EPS is $4.5 for 2019.
Debt is not excessive with interest coverage of ~4x based o operating profit and 6x on op cash.
Debt is eventually spaced out with next debt maturity of 530MM in 2023, 650MM in 2025 and the next big one is 427MM at 2045. In between is small amount maturity which can be handled by its cash holdings. total long term debt is 1.8B vs cash of 0.5B and equity of 5.3B. 9M operating cash flow is already 1B indicating its strong cash generation ability. Company is also actively paying down debt and engaging in the digital transformation which will pay fruits in future. The revenue drop is stablised but profit is lowered due to these investment.

Current valuation is not compelling and is a good entry point. Property and fix assets is 7B indicating a good source for unlocking value should management decide to sell off their assets.
Dividend payout is ~60% on net profit with yield of ~5% which is attractive.

DTEGY DEUTSCHE Telecom Review

https://www.telekom.com/en/investor-relations/publications/financial-results-2019#559390

Net debt: EUR 78.8 B which increase 42% a year ago mainly due to accounting principle change not because of company taking in new debt.
9M Operating Profit = 7.6B vs interest net expense of 1.8B
Interest coverage = 4x vs 5x in 2018 --> worsening financing ability
9M Operating Cash flow = 17.5B and FCF = 7.5B
Dividends Payout = 3.5B --> Coverage ratio is good. Not overpaying S/H. Dividend safety is high.
Interest coverage in terms of FCF and Operating Cash flow is much higher.

Overall no financing issues. Ability to pay banks and S/H is there.
Total Cash on Balancesheet = 6.4B vs ST Debt = 14B and LT Debt = 55B and LT Lease = 16B
20B debt expire within 5 years while 35B will expire beyond 5 years. No near term liquidity crunch as company's cash generation ability is there.

Overseas Education Limited OEL Review

https://links.sgx.com/FileOpen/OEL%20Financial%20Results%20Q3%202019.ashx?App=Announcement&FileID=585222

3Q19 financial statement.
>100 MM loan. total 2 mil of interest + capital repayment requirement every quarter while company is making ~2 MM of net profit. coverage ratio is on low side and without much margin.

The debt is for financing their new campus which is largely completed and they have shifted to new campus. Dividend payout is large with 8% yield. If business turn sour, they will have to cut dividend.
Need to look at cash flow to ascertain the safety

PHI (PLDT) Review

http://www.pldt.com/docs/default-source/presentations/2019/9m2019-presentation_final.pdf?sfvrsn=0

Share price keep tanking despite profitability. Market cap of ~4.5 B vs net debt of 2.9B. Debt is equally space out yearly with ~10% matured every year. Cash balance is 0.5B vs gross debt of 3.5B.
Interest payment is ~170MM annually based on 4.8% average interest rate. Net debt/ EBITDA is 2x indicating EBIDTA is 1.45B and interest coverage of 8.5x which is healthy.
The debt covenant of Net debt/Ebidta is 3x which will be raised to 4x after company seek for waiver for future debt raised for CAPEX spending. Currently, there is a big margin to hit the limit.
Debt/Equity is high and > 1.  Company bonds is currently investment grade.

Dividend yield is 6.9% based on morningstar quote indicating 300MM of dividend payment with market cap of 4.5B.

2019 CAPEX is 78B peso which is 1.6B USD which is higher than is EBIDTA. Based on 2011-2019, total CAPEX spent is 369B peso which is 7.4B and roughly 0.9B per year.

Assuming the same level of CAPEX spending going forward and an annual EBIDTA of 1.45B, Free cash flow is 0.55B and minus off interest expense, there is ~400MM available for dividend payout.
If the CAPEX investment leads to higher EBIDTA generation (high margin of ~50%), we can expect the dividend to be sustained or increased in future. current yield looks attractive based on the growth rate and PE ratio of 12x and Market cap/EBIDTA of 3-4x is not compelling.

Annual debt maturity is ~400MM. Company need to maintain the debt level or payoff with increase EBIDTA from its CAPEX.

Capitaland C31.SI Review

https://links.sgx.com/FileOpen/CL%20Investor%20Day%202019.ashx?App=Announcement&FileID=587892

Link to Capitaland 2019 investor day. Shows company long term planning and fact book of its business. No longer a property development but mainly as a fund manager managing private funds or REITS. Generate recurring income which is the main income contributor. Top 10 real estate manager globally with Blackstone at the TOP.

With the merger with Ascendas, Capitaland has grown in scale and harder to fail if properly managed. Currently integrating both business together to achieve the forecast synergy. This explains the merger between Ascott REIT and Ascendas hospitality trust to become a large hospitality trust which will be included in a REIT index and potential for trading at higher multiples.

With its REITs vehicle, its a good avenue for divesting its properties for gains. Debt/equity is ~0.7 which is acceptable.

https://investor.capitaland.com/newsroom/20191105_070643_C31_GDOVJM12R2G5FJSU.2.pdf

3rdQ 2019 financial results

Profit from operation = 941M vs finance cost of 234M. Coverage is 4x. Net profit is 527MM. Coverage is 2.2x.

Coverage ratio is typical for a REIT though the dividend yield is much lower but has much diversified holdings in different sectors and geographical area.
Cash in hand is 5.6B vs short term debt of 5.5B and long term debt of 27B.
Investment properties is 48B and investment/JV is 13B while development properties for sale is 7.7B
Equity is 39B. Company is not leveraged compared to Fraser properties.

Exposure to China is large at around 30-40%. Singapore is another 30%. REmaining is Europe and other developing countries. Good entry point if its stock price tank to ~$3 which is its long term average.

TRIP Review

Online travel review company. Derive revenue from hotel bookings and advertisment placed on the websites.

Good balance sheet and cash generation capability with high ebitda margin. Not paying dividend yet.
Profitability is good though low net profit margin due to high investment and depreciation cost. Most of the cost is on marketing and general administration cost.

Marginal cost is low as it is website based business.

High P/E ratio but low P/Cash flow ratios indicating its cash generation capability.
Fair value is estimated to be ~$45 indicating low valuation based on current price.

Good entry point although no dividend paid for holding the stock.