Tianfeng Securities·2025-08-20 08:11Investment Rating - The report maintains a "Buy" rating for the company, with an expectation of over 20% relative return within the next six months [6][15]. Core Insights - The company reported a revenue of RMB 97.543 billion for the first half of 2025, an increase of RMB 4.621 billion or 4.97% year-on-year. However, the profit before tax decreased by RMB 5.12 billion or 7.06% to RMB 6.737 billion, and the profit attributable to shareholders fell by RMB 1.44 billion or 4.36% to RMB 3.161 billion. The interim dividend was set at RMB 0.166 per share, slightly up from RMB 0.164 per share in the same period last year [1]. Sales Performance - The total natural gas sales volume reached 29.095 billion cubic meters, reflecting a year-on-year growth of 10.05%. Retail gas volume was 16.666 billion cubic meters, up 2.23%. The breakdown shows industrial gas volume at 12.47 billion cubic meters (+8%), commercial gas at 1.693 billion cubic meters (-1.5%), residential gas at 2.014 billion cubic meters (-3.6%), and gas station sales at 0.488 billion cubic meters (-48.5%). Distribution and trade saw a significant increase of 22.6% to 12.429 billion cubic meters. The average sales price of natural gas was RMB 2.77 per cubic meter, down RMB 0.1 from the previous year [2]. Processing and Transportation Performance - The LNG processing and transportation segment generated revenue of RMB 4.371 billion, a slight decrease of 1.58%. However, profit before tax increased by 11.41% to RMB 1.836 billion. The LNG plants achieved a record profit of RMB 140 million, with a 25% reduction in maintenance cycles. The total LNG gasification and loading volume at the receiving stations reached 7.899 billion cubic meters, a year-on-year increase of 1.66% [3]. Oil and LPG Sales - The average selling price of crude oil decreased from USD 67.77 per barrel to USD 62.88 per barrel, leading to a 15.91% drop in crude oil sales revenue to RMB 0.74 billion. LPG sales volume increased by 4.87% to 3.0684 million tons, with revenue rising by 1.03% to RMB 13.02 billion. The profit before tax for the LPG segment decreased by 3.03% to RMB 544 million [4]. Cost Management and Capital Expenditure - The company effectively controlled costs, reducing other sales, general, and administrative expenses to approximately RMB 1.121 billion, down 8.86% from RMB 1.230 billion in the previous year. Employee compensation costs also decreased by 10.07% to approximately RMB 2.850 billion. Capital expenditure for the first half of 2025 was RMB 1.926 billion, a significant decline of 31.6% [5]. Profit Forecast and Valuation - Due to a slowdown in natural gas demand growth and a decline in international oil prices, the profit forecasts for 2025, 2026, and 2027 have been revised down to RMB 6.229 billion, RMB 6.696 billion, and RMB 7.213 billion, respectively, from previous estimates of RMB 6.414 billion, RMB 7.011 billion, and RMB 7.656 billion [6].