BUD APAC(01876) 华创证券·2025-02-27 08:40Investment Rating - The report maintains a "Buy" rating for Budweiser APAC (01876.HK) with a target price of HKD 10, while the current price is HKD 8.66 [2][6]. Core Insights - The company reported a total revenue of USD 6.246 billion and normalized EBITDA of USD 1.807 billion for the year 2024, reflecting a year-on-year decline of 7.0% and 6.3% respectively. The normalized net profit attributable to shareholders was USD 778 million, showing a decrease of 15.2% [2][7]. - The fourth quarter results showed revenue and normalized EBITDA of USD 1.142 billion and USD 228 million respectively, with a year-on-year decline of 11.0% and 7.2% [2][7]. - The company plans to distribute a dividend of USD 750 million, which is a 7% increase, resulting in a payout ratio of 103.25% [2]. Financial Performance Summary - For the fiscal year 2024, Budweiser APAC's total sales volume decreased by 8.8%, with a significant decline in the Chinese market, where sales volume and price per ton saw year-on-year declines of 11.8% and 1.4% respectively [6][7]. - The company experienced a mixed performance across regions, with the Asia Pacific West region facing challenges while the Asia Pacific East region showed strong growth, particularly in South Korea [6][7]. - The overall gross margin for 2024 was 50.4%, with a slight year-on-year increase of 0.6 percentage points [6][7]. Future Outlook - Looking ahead to 2025, the company aims to prioritize market share recovery and has implemented significant management changes to drive this strategy. The new leadership is expected to bring renewed energy to the company's operations [6][7]. - The company plans to enhance its product offerings and increase marketing expenditures, particularly in key regions such as Fujian and Guangdong [6][7]. - The projected net profit for 2025 is adjusted to USD 815 million, with a corresponding PE ratio of 18 times [6][7].