Azure(002245) Soochow Securities·2024-10-31 12:49Investment Rating - The investment rating for the company is "Buy" (maintained) [1] Core Views - The Q3 performance met market expectations, with revenue of 4.8 billion yuan for the first three quarters of 2024, a year-on-year increase of 31%, and a net profit attributable to shareholders of 280 million yuan, up 173% year-on-year [2] - The gross margin for Q3 was 16.5%, an increase of 3.9 percentage points year-on-year, with a net profit margin of 5.8%, up 3.0 percentage points year-on-year [2] - The company expects continued strong demand in downstream markets, leading to upward revisions in net profit forecasts for 2024-2026 [4] Summary by Sections Financial Performance - Total revenue for 2022 was 6.285 billion yuan, with a decline of 5.92% year-on-year, while 2023 revenue is projected at 5.222 billion yuan, down 16.92% year-on-year [1] - The net profit attributable to shareholders for 2022 was 378.34 million yuan, a decrease of 43.54% year-on-year, with 2023 projected at 140.82 million yuan, down 62.78% year-on-year [1] - The latest diluted EPS for 2023 is 0.12 yuan per share, with a P/E ratio of 75.02 [1] Q3 Performance Highlights - Q3 revenue reached 1.8 billion yuan, with a quarter-on-quarter increase of 23% and a year-on-year increase of 8% [2] - The gross margin for Q3 was 18.9%, reflecting a quarter-on-quarter increase of 7.4 percentage points [2] - The company shipped 118 million units in Q3, an 18% increase quarter-on-quarter, with expectations to ship 138 million units in Q4 [2] Business Segments - The lithium battery segment generated 670 million yuan in revenue for Q3, with a gross margin of 19.8%, up 4.6 percentage points from H1 [3] - The LED business reported Q3 revenue of 450 million yuan, with a gross margin of 22.5%, an increase of 6.6 percentage points from H1 [3] - The metal logistics segment maintained stable performance with Q3 revenue of 620 million yuan [3] Future Outlook - The company has revised its net profit forecasts for 2024-2026 to 399 million yuan, 599 million yuan, and 686 million yuan respectively, reflecting year-on-year growth of 183%, 50%, and 14% [4] - The projected P/E ratios for 2024, 2025, and 2026 are 26x, 18x, and 15x respectively [4]