Renren, Inc. (RENN)

“Renren, Inc. (RENN) is currently known as the Facebook (FB) of China. It is down some 80% since it went public almost three years ago. But the company is much more than a Chinese Facebook (which is blocked in China). Half of its revenue comes from its gaming sites, and this is growing rapidly. ... The company is growing revenue. It is spending money to convert from a PC company to a mobile company in a macro environment where advertisers spent less money.

“The good news is that more people are joining up. Total users climbed 25% to over 172 million. Monthly unique log-in users also reached 48 million in the month of September, representing 27% growth year-over-year. Renren currently has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, with a gross ttm profit of $91 million based on $160 million of revenue. ... Total cash is $892.49 million, or a massive $2.37 per share. Debt is zero. This is after the company bought a student loan company in San Fransisco for $49 billion. If you net out the cash, this company is valued at $1.06 per share. This is cheap given its growth rate, and it limits the downside to about a third.

“There are three basic scenarios. Wall Street rediscovers Chinese Internet companies like Renren based on a Chinese rebound, in which case this stock goes back above $10 in a matter of months. Facebook, for example, has doubled in the past four months after being written off for dead. A second scenario is that Renren gets a handle on the mobile advertising, its gaming and U.S. student loan business continue to grow, and advertisers expand their budgets. Renren goes up on organic growth. Some of the biggest share price moves come when a company goes from losing money to making money quarter to quarter.

“The third scenario is that Facebook/Google/Microsoft/Apple buys Renren for instant access to the Chinese market. The risk is that China is hit with a political situation that shuts down Renren. But Renren is already so cheap, the political situation is more than priced in. Renren users use their real names; think LinkedIn rather than Twitter. Accountability coupled with rejuvenated Chinese growth should keep politics on the back burner. The chart shows solid support at $3. The balance sheet couldn’t be better. The growth prospect is there and easily understandable. This stock is overdue for a run. Buy Renren, Inc. (RENN) under $3.50. Put your stop in at $2.92. Two-year price target: $12.”

Christian DeHaemer, Crisis & Opportunity, January 18, 2013, via the February Dick Davis Investment Digest

Christian DeHaemer

Prior to being the editor of Crisis and Opportunity, Christian DeHaemer worked for 14 years as a senior analyst with such publications as Crisis Trader, Red Zone Profits, The GRESSOR and Taipan. Over the years, he has traveled to Cuba, Egypt, India and Bulgaria, among other frontier markets, in search of ridiculously low values and massive upside. He bought numerous gold mining stocks in November 2007 when they were trading for less than cash and were completely unwanted. One gold stock is up 303% in seven months; all are up triple digits. DeHaemer likes to buy fear with a cool hand while others are selling in panic. He bought oil wildcatters when the price per barrel was plummeting into the $30s; he took profits a few months later when oil was pushing $80.

Renren, Inc. (RENN)

“Renren, Inc. (RENN) is currently known as the Facebook (FB) of China. It is down some 80% since it went public almost three years ago. But the company is much more than a Chinese Facebook (which is blocked in China). Half of its revenue comes from its gaming...