360 Security Technology (SH:601360) Xin Lang Zheng Quan·2025-07-17 09:36Core Viewpoint - The company 360 is facing significant financial challenges, with continuous revenue decline and increasing losses attributed to high sales expenses and unsuccessful investments in various technology sectors [1][5][12]. Financial Performance - 360 expects a net profit loss of 240 million to 320 million yuan for the first half of 2025, primarily due to increased sales expenses aimed at enhancing product promotion and market influence [5]. - The company has experienced a continuous revenue decline over the past six years, with revenues of 108.86 billion, 95.21 billion, 90.55 billion, and 79.48 billion yuan from 2021 to 2024, representing year-on-year declines of 6.28%, 12.54%, 4.89%, and 12.23% respectively [3][6]. - Cumulative net losses have exceeded 4 billion yuan over the past three and a half years since turning from profit to loss in 2022 [1][3]. Business Segments - The main business segments of 360 include internet advertising and services, smart hardware, security services, and internet value-added services, with internet advertising contributing over 50% of total revenue [6]. - In 2024, the revenue from internet advertising and services was 4.166 billion yuan (down 7.85%), smart hardware was 1.014 billion yuan (down 35.44%), and security services was 1.287 billion yuan (down 27.06%), while internet value-added services grew to 1.379 billion yuan (up 25.51%) [6][8]. Expense Trends - The company has seen an increase in expense ratios, with R&D expense ratio rising from 34.28% in 2023 to 40.29% in 2024, sales expense ratio increasing from 22.41% to 26.97%, and management expense ratio from 7.74% to 8.3% [8] Investment Strategy - 360 has been actively investing in various technology trends, including electric vehicles, the metaverse, and AI, but has faced challenges in realizing profitable returns from these investments [12][13]. - The company's investment in the electric vehicle company Hozon Auto has resulted in significant losses, with investment losses of 894 million yuan and 687 million yuan in 2022 and 2023 respectively [12]. - The launch of the "N World" metaverse platform has not achieved significant success due to a lack of foundational technology and ecosystem capabilities [12][13]. Market Position - Following its reverse merger in 2018, 360's stock price has experienced significant volatility, with a peak above 60 yuan per share, but has since declined to 10.87 yuan per share as of July 17, 2025, resulting in a market capitalization of only 76.1 billion yuan [10][12].