Three strong Asian stocks trading at bargain prices
Professional investor Nitin Bajaj of the Fidelity Asian Values investment trust picks three stocks that dominate their industries, earn good returns on capital, and are on attractive valuations.

I have a simple investment philosophy: buy good businesses run by competent and honest people, and buy them at a price that leaves enough of a margin of safety for mistakes or bad luck. I try to buy companies that other people are not looking at. That is where I find bargains and an adequate margin of safety, but it also tends to lead me away from big stocks.
As a result, Fidelity Asian Values has most of its capital deployed in small companies (those with a market capitalisation of up to £5bn); stocks above that threshold only make up about 15% of the trust’s holdings as at the end of July 2021. The trust also has a value bias given my focus on companies that are mispriced, either because they are yet to be discovered by investors or are currently undervalued owing to near-term concerns.
Growth focus has left value cheap
I feel the current focus on themes and growth stocks is a great opportunity. The pivot towards growth stocks between 2016 and 2020 has led to the widest dispersion between growth and value stocks in almost 100 years (similar to the situation in 1999). This bifurcated market in terms of valuations has allowed me to build positions in businesses with long-duration cashflows and good management at attractive prices.
MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Given the broad investment universe of the trust includes the whole of Asia (excluding Japan), I can pick from a diverse range of companies across various sectors and geographies from India to the Philippines and I am excited by our holdings in the trust today. We own a portfolio of businesses which are dominant in their industries, earn good returns on capital and are available at attractive valuations.
An attractive yield from hydropower
NHPC (Mumbai: NHPC) is a 100% hydro-electric power generation company in India, operating run-of-the-river power stations. Its current capacity of seven gigawatts will expand to 12 gigawatts with the addition of new hydroelectric power projects over the next two-to-three years. The stock offers a good bargain as it trades at about seven times its 12-month forward earnings and provides a 6%-7% dividend yield. The price/earnings (p/e) ratio is set to drop further to five times as the new power plants start to generate earnings.
A market-leading online broker
Kiwoom Securities (Seoul: 039490) is South Korea’s largest online brokerage firm with a 30% share of the domestic market. The company has built an enduring moat based on best-in-class customer service, technology interfaces and value-added services. The stock trades at about four times its 12-month forward earnings and should be able to grow well in next five years as it adds distribution of savings products and foreign exchange services to its product offering.
IT in Indonesia
Metrodata Electronics (Jakarta: MTDL) is Indonesia’s largest information technology (IT) products distributor and is among the leading players in IT consulting, implementation and system integration. The stock has performed reasonably well since we initiated our position last year during the coronavirus-driven panic. However, Metrodata is still trading on an attractive valuation at 11-12 times forward earnings with net cash on its balance sheet and 20% return on equity. It should be able to grow at 5%-10% annually for the next five years.
Get the latest financial news, insights and expert analysis from our award-winning MoneyWeek team, to help you understand what really matters when it comes to your finances.
Nitin Bajaj joined Fidelity in 2003 as a research analyst in London. After a very successful period in research, he became an Assistant Portfolio Manager in 2007 for the Fidelity Global Special Situations Fund in the UK. He subsequently moved to Mumbai in 2009 to manage Fidelity’s domestic Indian equity funds, before moving to Singapore in 2012 to manage the Fidelity Asian Smaller Companies Fund (SICAV). Since April 2015, he has also managed Fidelity Asian Values PLC utilising the same contrarian value philosophy and approach.
-
Reeves warned against property tax shake-up – 3 ways it could backfire on first-time buyers
Rachel Reeves reportedly has her eye on high-end property taxes in the upcoming Budget, but there are concerns a shake-up could unintentionally hamper those trying to get on the housing ladder
-
Average Brits want to retire five years before they can – who has the widest retirement gap?
Brits are expecting to work for longer than ever but there are big disparities in the number of extra working years predicted. A small tweak could help close the gap
-
Pierre-Édouard Stérin wants to make France great again
Conservative billionaire Pierre-Édouard Stérin is seeking to lead a political and spiritual renaissance across the Channel. The planning looks meticulous
-
Global investors have overlooked the top innovators in emerging markets
Opinion Carlos Hardenberg, portfolio manager, Mobius Investment Trust, highlights three emerging market stocks where he’d put his money
-
Pinewood Technologies: a drive for growth
Pinewood Technologies’ platform is one of the best in the business. Investors should buy in
-
'EV maker Faraday Future will crash'
Faraday Future Intelligent Electric is failing dismally to live up to its name, says Matthew Partridge
-
Investors should cheer the coming nuclear summer
The US and UK have agreed a groundbreaking deal on nuclear power, and the sector is seeing a surge in interest from around the world. Here's how you can profit
-
8 of the best houses for sale with follies
The best houses for sale with follies in the grounds – from a five-storey Victorian Gothic tower in Tonbridge, Kent, to a former mill in Oxfordshire with gardens that include a folly on an island in a lake
-
A tale of two Reits – why performance matters for valuation
AEW UK and Regional are two Reits that are valued very differently, despite a shared focus on properties outside London
-
Healthcare stocks look cheap, but tread carefully
Shares in healthcare companies could get a shot in the arm if uncertainty over policy in the US wanes, but are they worth the risk?