Written by|Planet
Source|Beduo Finance
A circle of friends stirred up waves, and the "tide maker" behind it was Zhang Xiaolong, CEO of Chalk Co., Ltd. (02469.HK, hereinafter referred to as "Chalk Company" or "Chalk"), a Hong Kong-listed company.
1. Is “discourteous treatment” a misunderstanding?
On September 13, Zhang Xiaolong posted on his circle of friends, saying that he was treated rudely by the fund manager during the Essence Fund road show. According to Zhang Xiaolong's description, the female manager "sat down without looking at me. She made a phone call and replied to messages. She then picked up the mirror on the back of her phone and looked at me to touch up makeup and squeeze out pimples."
Afterwards, Zhang Xiaolong took the elevator back and cursed the fund manager for more than 10 minutes. Zhang Xiaolong said: "The market is not good now. The buyer has spoiled the fund manager and doesn't even understand basic manners. I don't want to spoil her. I'm teaching her how to be a good person for her parents. This life lesson is given to her for free." ”
Zhang Xiaolong also said, "Although I am crazy all day long, I never brag or deceive others. No matter whether the market is good or bad, I will not take advantage of others. Enterprises and investment institutions should communicate on an equal footing and candidly. We will not encounter this kind of situation again in the future." You should educate her by scolding her like a shrew without any politeness, it is for her own good."
Faced with Zhang Xiaolong's attack, the manager surnamed Tan also responded in WeChat Moments, saying it was a misunderstanding. She said she was suffering from a rhinitis attack and felt nasal discomfort when she first started communicating. She then used the camera of her mobile phone to check whether there were any mucus and tears in her nose and wiped it with a tissue. She did not mean to be disrespectful.
The manager explained that after Zhang Xiaolong terminated the communication, because she was worried about Zhang Xiaolong's misunderstanding, she sent a message to Mr. Ran, CFO of Chalk Company, at 4:24 pm, explaining that today's rhinitis attack may have caused Zhang Xiaolong to misunderstand, and then treated Zhang Xiaolong. provided corresponding explanation.
On September 14, Zhang Xiaolong posted another post on the matter in his circle of friends, reflecting, "I was impulsive again today. Even I feel that my quality is low and my structure is not enough. I reflected on it, listened to the teacher, read more, and will never do it again." Named and cursed.”
Upon careful observation, it is not difficult to find that Zhang Xiaolong only responded to his public swearing, and the versions of events described by him and the fund manager were different. Whether it was just a misunderstanding caused by misunderstanding, the truth of the matter may only be known best to the person involved.
2. He has publicly made “connotative complaints” several times
It is worth mentioning that before the "angry fund manager" incident occurred, Zhang Xiaolong had repeatedly received attention for his sharp remarks. In September 2020, Zhang Xiaolong publicly released a video, pointing out that Hunan Satellite TV's "Youth in the Earth" program was a fraud in poverty alleviation, and accused the host Shen Mengchen of "playing a big name."
Faced with Zhang Xiaolong's doubts, Shen Mengchen publicly responded: "Don't worry, everyone, I am not that kind of person, and the truth will be revealed sooner or later." Three days later, Zhang Xiaolong issued an apology statement on Weibo, admitting that he had made inappropriate comments while drunk. He immediately deleted Weibo and apologized to the "Youth in the Earth" program team and Shen Mengchen.
It is not uncommon for Zhang Xiaolong to "vent his anger through drinking". On June 28, 2023, Zhang Xiaolong sarcastically said in his circle of friends: "A former big shot who claimed to be a value investor told me that he invested in education for charity and did not need to withdraw. As a result, this big shot was on the first day of lifting the ban. A day of mindless selling.”
Zhang Xiaolong said, "He should have almost sold out, and I have blocked him." He also publicly declared, "You must stay away from those who say they want to invest in value, especially people named Zhang." With the picture "Value" "The book targets Zhang Lei, the founder of Hillhouse Capital, and has attracted much attention.
Interestingly, the day after the "connotation" was disclosed, Zhang Xiaolong explained that he just "drank a little wine and teased Boss Zhang", and also said that "Boss Zhang didn't sell many shares, only 10 or 20 million shares", and He said, "Investors' buying and selling are normal and are their own rights. They have no opinions. Complaining about buying and selling is a sign of their own incompetence."
However, whether Zhang Xiaolong's emotional catharsis was "joking" or "telling the truth after drinking" may be able to get a glimpse of it from the market performance of Chalk Company at that time.
3. Chalk whose market value was cut in half
Public information shows that Chalk, which was born from Yuanfudao, was founded in 2015. It is an "Internet + education" non-academic vocational training service provider, providing adult students seeking development in public positions and institutions as well as several other professions and industries. Complete training courses for recruitment and qualifying exams.
In 2020, Chalk was spun off from Yuanfudao and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on January 9, 2023. At that time, Chalk Company was offered at an offering price of HK$9.9 per share and raised approximately HK$120 million. On the first day of listing, Chalk's share price sang a triumphant song, finally closing at HK$11.1 per share, with a market value of over HK$23 billion.
According to Beido Finance, Chalk Company has a very luxurious shareholder lineup, including well-known investors such as Tencent, IDG, Matrix Partners, and Hillhouse Capital. Before listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Tencent held 14.13% of Chalk Company's shares, IDG held 11.95%, Matrix Partners held 7.21%, and Hillhouse Capital held 6.02%.
But since the six-month lifting period for listing, Chalk Company's stock price has begun to decline. Public information shows that the share price of Chalk fell by 18.62% on the first day the ban was lifted (June 20), and by 38.47% on June 21. Since then, the share price has fallen further, falling by more than 66%, with the lowest falling to HK$2.96 per share.
According to public information disclosure, Hillhouse Capital also participated in the reduction of Chalk Company’s holdings after the lifting of the ban period. In June 2023, it reduced its holdings of 12.5 million shares of Chalk at a price of HK$5.1255 per share, with a total amount of approximately HK$64.0688 million. The latest number of shares held was 113 million shares, with a shareholding ratio of 4.99%.
Beido Finance learned that Hillhouse Capital previously held 134 million shares of Chalk Company. This means that Hillhouse Capital has indeed reduced its holdings, but it is not the "brainless selling" as Zhang Xiaolong said. Moreover, the day after Zhang Xiaolong disclosed his "connotation", Chalk stock price reversed its decline and reached the largest intraday price. The increase reached 27.99%.
On August 30, 2023, Chalk announced its first interim performance report after listing. The financial report shows that in the first half of 2023, Chalk achieved revenue of 1.682 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15.9%; net profit during the period was 81.476 million yuan, turning a profit from a loss in 2022; adjusted net profit was 288 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 201.2% .
However, as of press time on September 14, Chalk Company’s stock price was HK$4.99 per share, with a total market value of HK$11.246 billion. The cumulative decline in stock price was 49.6% compared to the IPO, and the market value was approximately HK$12 billion lower than the initial listing period. Some comments said, "If you (Zhang Xiaolong) have the ability to raise the stock price... all you have to do is be tough."