Just 18 months ago, Tencent Holdings was on the cusp of becoming Asia’s second trillion-dollar company, as Chinese internet giants carried the fight for dominance to their U.S. rivals.
But a more than $560 billion market value wipeout later and with shares slumping to a near four-year low, investor hopes for a smooth recovery are on their last legs.
Next week, Tencent will seek to assure investors about its outlook during second-quarter results. They won’t be easy to convince. The company is set to report its first quarterly revenue decline since the 2008 financial crisis, weighed down by a slowdown in gaming sales. A lack of clarity over Beijing’s crackdown is weighing on sentiment as well.