Chinese hotpot restaurant chain said its revenue for the first half of the year is expected to rise by no less than 23.7% year over year to 18.8 billion yuan, lower than expectation of the market and UBS, mainly due to the weak macro environment in the second quarter, the bank said in a note.
Haidilao expected its net profit for the period to reach no less than 2.2 billion yuan, much better than the market and the bank’s expectations, mainly due to improvements in the operational efficiency of restaurants and gross profit margin, it said.
UBS estimated the company’s net profit margin for the period to reach about 11.7%, which is better than the market and the bank’s previous expectations, reaching to a level close to the peak seen in 2016-2017.
UBS gave Haidilao a target price of HK$18.5 and maintained its Neutral rating. Haidilao’s shares closed at HK$21.85 on Monday.