Some Chinese Stocks Are Starting to Look Like Bargains. Where to Look.

The move, conscionable days aft DiDi had raised $4.4 cardinal successful the year’s biggest IPO, led the banal to suffer a 5th of its worth connected July 6, and rattled different Chinese net shares. The KraneShares CSI China Internet exchange-traded money (KWEB) has fallen 15% since June 30, arsenic investors braced for much scrutiny of tech companies’ information practices and different regulatory moves.

“We present cognize this is simply a regulatory minefield, and those who exposure themselves to the assemblage are taking connected a batch of volatility,” says Arthur Kroeber, Gavekal Research’s caput of research. “If your skyline is agelong term, this is going to beryllium 1 of the maturation stories of the adjacent decennary and you person to thrust it out. But if you are much abbreviated term, you whitethorn accidental it’s excessively analyzable and travel backmost successful a twelvemonth erstwhile things person calmed down.”

The question of regulatory measures has created the benignant of uncertainty that draws bargain hunters. Technology giants similar Alibaba Group Holding (BABA), whose shares are down 11% this year, are popping up connected worth managers’ radars. But caution is warranted, particularly for investors successful U.S.-listed shares of Chinese companies. Regulatory pressures could continue. “It’s astir apt conscionable the commencement of the enforcement actions,” says Kenneth Zhou, a spouse astatine instrumentality steadfast WilmerHale successful Beijing.

Fund managers person described China’s regulatory thrust arsenic a determination to summation amended power and acceptable up guardrails for fast-growing integer industries and net titans. It’s besides a mode for Beijing to woody with escalating U.S.-China tensions, successful portion resulting from caller authorities successful Washington that sets the signifier for delisting Chinese companies if they don’t connection much auditing disclosures wrong 3 years.

One interest for China’s regulators: the valuable troves of data collected by Chinese tech companies listed successful the U.S., creating a imaginable nationalist information threat.

“Control of information is shaping up to beryllium a large home and geopolitical issue, with nonstop equity marketplace implications for firms operating connected some sides of the Pacific,” Rory Green, caput of China and Asia probe astatine TS Lombard, said successful a caller probe note.

Beijing is trying to summation better power of Chinese companies, including those listed abroad. Many of the largest Chinese techs, similar Alibaba, Tencent Holdings (700.Hong Kong) and JD.com (JD), are registered successful the Cayman Islands and usage a adaptable involvement entity (VIE) structure, allowing them to get astir Chinese restrictions connected overseas ownership. Though mostly ignored by investors, the analyzable operation is simply a grey country because, nether it, foreigners don’t really ain a involvement successful a Chinese company. Instead, they indispensable trust connected China honoring contracts that necktie them to the company.

For decades, China has mostly turned a unsighted oculus to the extralegal structure, but it’s paying much attraction now. Bloomberg News reported this past week that Beijing is considering requiring companies that usage this operation to question its support earlier listing elsewhere. Already-listed companies mightiness person to question support for immoderate secondary offerings.

Analysts and wealth managers accidental they don’t expect China to unravel the VIEs, which are utilized by the country’s largest and astir palmy companies and would instrumentality decades to undo. Many are besides skeptical that the U.S. volition travel done with its delisting threat.

But Beijing could usage VIE scrutiny to exert accrued power implicit companies and to propulsion backmost against U.S. regulators’ calls for much disclosure. Indirectly, the scrutiny volition apt bolster Beijing’s efforts to lure home companies backmost home—a thrust that’s already led to secondary listings successful Hong Kong for Alibaba, Yum China Holdings (YUMC), and JD.com.

Analysts besides expect the heightened scrutiny to slow, if not halt, the fig of Chinese companies coming nationalist successful the U.S. successful the adjacent term. It could besides shrink the tally of U.S.-listed Chinese companies—more than 240 with implicit $2 trillion successful combined marketplace value—that entreaty to do-it-yourself retail investors. Any of these incapable to unafraid secondary listings successful Hong Kong oregon China mightiness spell private, says Louis Lau, manager of the Brandes Emerging Markets Value fund.

U.S.-listed stocks could spot volatility arsenic a result. Increasingly, money managers and organization investors—Lau included—have been gravitating toward stocks listed successful Hong Kong oregon mainland China whenever possible. For retail investors, the champion mode to entree these overseas listings, arsenic good arsenic the much domestically oriented stocks that immoderate money managers favor, is done communal oregon exchange-traded funds.

Money managers are amended positioned to navigate immoderate of the logistical complications created by U.S.-China tensions, specified arsenic the fallout from a caller enforcement bid that banned U.S. concern successful companies that Washington says has ties to China’s subject complex. The S&P Dow Jones Indices and FTSE Russell decided this period to footwear much than 20 Shanghai- and Shenzhen-listed concerns affected by the order.

Other companies could besides beryllium banned and look akin fallout, with Reuters reporting connected July 9 that the Biden medication is considering adding much Chinese entities to the banned database over alleged quality rights abuses successful Xinjiang.

As investing successful China gets much complicated, the lawsuit builds for investors to take a money manager who tin navigate these complexities and put locally. Failure to bash truthful could beryllium costly. The iShares MSCI China A ETF (CNYA) is up 3% implicit the past 3 months, portion the Invesco Golden Dragon China ETF (PGJ), which focuses connected U.S.-listed Chinese companies, is down 14% successful the aforesaid span.

“Regulation is present to stay. Investors volition conscionable person to get utilized to this,” says Tiffany Hsiao, a seasoned China capitalist who is simply a portfolio manager connected Artisan’s China Post-Venture strategy. “This is capitalism with Chinese characteristics. China is evidently inactive a Communist state. It embraces capitalism to thrust innovation and amended productivity, but it’s important for companies that bash precise good to springiness backmost to society—and Chinese regulators volition punctual you of that.”

As a result, she says, investors indispensable determination beyond the wide held net titans to find stocks that could payment from the regulatory scrutiny that the giants face. Veteran investors are stressing selectivity, searching successful section markets for companies that are extracurricular the crossfire.

“A institution tin person large fundamentals and absorbing opportunities, but get blindsided by authorities action, which is progressively active,” says David Semple, manager of the VanEck Emerging Markets money (GBFAX). “You request a higher grade of condemnation than mean to beryllium involved.”

Semple is gravitating toward companies he’s acquainted with, successful sectors that could get deed by regulation, but with little interaction than investors think.

One example: China is targeting after-school people providers, arsenic it tries to little child-care costs and promote families to person much children. Nonetheless, Semple sees accidental successful China Education Group Holdings (839.Hong Kong), which could marque acquisitions arsenic Beijing forces nationalist universities to divest affiliated backstage ones.

Of the ample net stocks, Semple favors Tencent, the apical presumption successful his fund, implicit Alibaba, different holding. Alibaba faces much competitory pressures, Semple says, and Tencent has an vantage with its Weixin messaging and videogaming franchises, which supply a high-quality, comparatively low-cost travel of users for its different businesses.

Tencent besides has softly complied with the government’s requirements, with CEO Ma Huateng keeping a debased profile, says Martin Lau, managing spouse and a portfolio manager astatine FSSA Investment Managers, which oversees $37 billion. That’s a positive, fixed the backlash that met outspoken Alibaba and Ant co-founder Jack Ma.

Many Chinese net companies’ fundamentals are sound. However, complying with the stringent rules connected collecting and safeguarding idiosyncratic information astir apt volition trim their profits from that area, says Xiaohua Xu, a elder expert astatine Eastspring Investments.

Alibaba and different net companies, including JD.com, are inexpensive capable to pull worth investors. But volatility is likely, with investors recalibrating maturation expectations arsenic Beijing rolls retired caller rules, and reviews past deals. In addition, wide held U.S.-listed Chinese stocks, including Alibaba, could go proxies for investors’ China angst.

Despite the yellowish flags, investors person crushed to support China successful the mix. “If you are buying growth, the satellite has duplicate engines: the U.S. and China,” says Jason Hsu, president and main concern serviceman of plus manager Rayliant Global Advisors and co-founder of Research Affiliates. But, helium adds, the U.S. is much expensive. “And whenever determination is risk—and the satellite sees China arsenic risky, with this deepening that bias—that means opportunity.”

Write to Reshma Kapadia astatine reshma.kapadia@barrons.com