China's live streaming to surge to $15bn in 2020: Goldman Sachs
Analysts from Goldman Sachs have predicted that China's video livestream market will grow to $15bn by 2020, more than seven times what it was two years ago. "China is leading the world in live streaming," commented equity research analyst Fan Liu. The analysts are initiating buy on the two leaders of the market - US listed Chinese stocks Momo and YY - which they predict will surge to 45% and 35% respectively due to the rapid growth of the video livestream market. Analysts warned of the potential pressures of Chinese regulators however, and that social media stocks tend to be volatile.

An investor looks at an electronic board showing stock information at a brokerage house in Shanghai on March 16, 2017.

Goldman Sachs predicts two U.S.-listed Chinese stocks, Momo and YY , will surge double-digits on the rapid growth of the video livestream market there.

"China is leading the world in live streaming – where individuals broadcast themselves singing, chatting or even eating," equity research analyst Fan Liu and a team of other analysts said in a Thursday report.

The analysts forecast the livestreaming market to grow to $15 billion in 2020, more than seven times what it was just two years ago, and are initiating buy on the two leaders of the market "after a flurry of startups in the space last year."

Messaging app Momo has a strong existing social network, while YY has "solid content generation capability," the analysts said.

Shares of Momo closed nearly 7 percent higher Thursday at $38.53 a share, leaving about 45 percent upside to Goldman's $56 12-month price target. Shares of YY gained 5 percent to $74.72, about 35 percent below the analysts' $101 price target.

Livestreaming enjoyed the highest revenue per hour in 2016 (US $)

Source: Goldman Sachs

Momo reached a record 91.3 million monthly active users in the second quarter, according to the Goldman report, while YY had 66 monthly active users for mobile livestreaming and 5.7 million paying users in the second quarter.

To be sure, both stocks tend to be volatile and are based on business models sensitive to consumer sentiment.

The Goldman analysts also noted pressure from Chinese regulators could also quickly turn sentiment around.

Among other major Chinese stocks, Goldman Sachs has a conviction buy rating on Alibaba and buy ratings on Baidu , Ctrip , JD.com , NetEase , Tencent and Vipshop .