LB Group(002601) 中原证券·2025-04-25 12:23Investment Rating - The report maintains an "Accumulate" investment rating for the company, indicating a projected increase of 5% to 15% relative to the CSI 300 index over the next six months [17]. Core Views - The company faced performance pressure due to a downturn in the chemical raw materials industry, particularly affecting its titanium dioxide and related products. In 2024, the company achieved a revenue of 27.513 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2.80%, but net profit dropped by 32.79% to 2.169 billion yuan [4][5]. - The company continues to enhance its competitiveness through vertical integration and global expansion, which are expected to support long-term growth despite current market challenges [6][8]. - The company reported a significant increase in titanium sponge production and sales, with production rising by 34.56% to 69,700 tons and sales increasing by 42.57% to 66,900 tons in 2024 [5]. Summary by Sections Financial Performance - In 2024, the company generated a total revenue of 27.513 billion yuan, with a net profit of 2.169 billion yuan, reflecting a decline of 32.79% year-on-year. The fourth quarter alone saw a revenue of 6.647 billion yuan, with a net loss of 395 million yuan [4][5]. - The company’s gross margin for 2024 was 25.01%, down by 1.69 percentage points from the previous year, while the net profit margin decreased by 3.99 percentage points to 8.14% [5][6]. Product Performance - The titanium dioxide segment showed resilience with a production of 1.2955 million tons, up 8.74%, and sales of 1.2545 million tons, up 8.25%, generating revenue of 18.980 billion yuan, a 6.82% increase [4][5]. - The titanium sponge segment also performed well, with revenue reaching 2.647 billion yuan, a 16.71% increase, driven by a production increase of 34.56% [5]. Strategic Initiatives - The company is focusing on vertical integration by extending its supply chain upstream, which has improved its cost competitiveness. In 2024, it produced 1.493 million tons of titanium concentrate, all for internal use [6][8]. - The company is actively expanding its global footprint to mitigate the impact of anti-dumping investigations in various regions, aiming to establish overseas production bases and enhance its market share [6][8].