Portfolio update September 2025
A weak month for the portfolio, but with three deep dives published, plenty to think about.
Potential 4.6x P/E with net cash representing 72% of the market cap. Estimated reading time: 21 minutes
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I bought shares in Hong Kong restaurant operator Fairwood in late December 2022. At the time, the city’s COVID-19 restrictions had just been removed, and the Hong Kong-China border was about to open, too.
But since that point, Fairwood’s share price has continued lower:
This begs the question: what the hell happened?
The answer is that Hong Kong’s restaurant industry has faced incredible challenges throughout COVID-19 and even until today.
But if we look beyond those challenges, will Fairwood end up in a better place? Or is the business facing a secular decline?
Table of contents:
1. Quick recap
2. Update since my first write-up
2.1. The post-COVID experience
2.2. The new Fairwood app and website
2.3. Related party transactions
2.4. Fairwood’s repriced options scheme
3. What will change for Fairwood?
3.1. Positive recent guidance
3.2. The 4th generation store design
3.3. A potential supply response?
3.4. Government initiatives to solve the manpower crunch
4. Valuation multiples
5. Risks
6. Conclusion
Have a look at my original Fairwood (52 HK - US$117 million) report. It was written back in 2021. At the time, I considered Fairwood to be a bet on its recovery from COVID-19.
For those who don’t want to read the entire presentation, here’s a quick summary:
When I eventually bought shares in Fairwood myself in December 2022, I saw evidence that foot traffic was returning. All COVID-19 restrictions had been removed, and the border was also about to open up. And that’s indeed what happened in the subsequent two years.
Fairwood’s revenue recovery has played out nicely:
The two major factors were the removal of Hong Kong’s dining-out restrictions in October 2022 and the reopening of Hong Kong’s border in January 2023. It took a while for the face mask mandate and the arrival PCR test requirements to be removed, but eventually, they were. Hong Kong’s government even introduced spending vouchers to lure tourists back to the city.
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