Western Mining(SH:601168) Minsheng Securities·2024-03-16 16:00Investment Rating - The report maintains a "Recommended" rating for the company [2][31]. Core Views - The company achieved a revenue of 42.748 billion yuan in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 6%, but the net profit attributable to shareholders decreased by 18% to 2.789 billion yuan [6][11]. - The decline in net profit is attributed to lower prices for battery-grade lithium carbonate and zinc, as well as increased management and research expenses [11][12]. - The company expects production capacity to improve significantly in 2024 due to the completion of the Yulong copper mine expansion project, which will enhance ore processing capacity to 22.8 million tons per year [23][24]. Summary by Sections Financial Performance - In Q4 2023, the company reported a revenue of 10.515 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 17.8% but a quarter-on-quarter increase of 10.1% [6][11]. - The net profit for Q4 was 5.92 billion yuan, down 43.8% year-on-year and 14.4% quarter-on-quarter [6][11]. - The company’s total profit for 2023 was 4.719 billion yuan, with a net profit of 4.233 billion yuan [11][12]. Production and Capacity Expansion - The Yulong copper mine's first and second phase upgrades were completed in November 2023, which is expected to increase copper production significantly in 2024 [23][24]. - The company plans to produce 158,715 tons of copper concentrate in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 20.88% [10][23]. Dividend Policy - The company maintained a high dividend payout ratio of 43% in 2023, distributing a total of 1.2 billion yuan to shareholders, resulting in a dividend yield of 2.56% [25][26]. Profit Forecast - The company is projected to achieve net profits of 3.456 billion yuan, 3.606 billion yuan, and 3.745 billion yuan for the years 2024, 2025, and 2026, respectively [31].