老百姓：短期业绩承压，毛利率显著提升

Investment Rating - The investment rating for the company is "Buy" (maintained) [6] Core Views - The company reported a revenue of 10.94 billion yuan in the first half of 2024, a year-on-year increase of 1.19%, while the net profit attributable to shareholders was 503 million yuan, down 2.05% year-on-year [10][11] - The gross margin for the first half of 2024 was 34.32%, an increase of 1.59 percentage points year-on-year, with specific segments showing improvements: Western and Chinese medicine gross margin at 32.21% (up 2.18pp), Chinese medicine at 50.10% (up 0.81pp), and non-pharmaceuticals at 39.77% (up 1.18pp) [11][12] Financial Performance - The company achieved a revenue of 10.94 billion yuan in H1 2024, with a net profit of 503 million yuan [10] - The gross margin increased to 34.32% in H1 2024, compared to the previous year [11] - The company’s total shares are 760.23 million, with a circulating market value of approximately 10.23 billion yuan [6] Store Expansion and Management - As of June 2024, the company had 14,969 stores, including 9,923 direct-operated and 5,046 franchised stores, with 1,625 new stores added in H1 2024 [11] - The company is actively pursuing outpatient coordination qualifications for its stores, with 5,028 stores having obtained such qualifications by June 2024 [11] Business Model and Partnerships - The company is a leader in the franchise business within the industry, focusing on lower-tier markets, achieving a distribution sales volume of approximately 1.08 billion yuan in H1 2024 [11] - The alliance business has also seen significant growth, with a 92.4% year-on-year increase in distribution sales volume to approximately 18 million yuan [11] Earnings Forecast and Valuation - The company’s projected revenues for 2024-2026 are 23.36 billion, 25.70 billion, and 29.19 billion yuan, with corresponding growth rates of 4.10%, 10.05%, and 13.56% [12] - The net profit attributable to shareholders is expected to be 979 million, 1.13 billion, and 1.35 billion yuan for the same period, with growth rates of 5.35%, 15.92%, and 18.66% respectively [12]