First(603806) 国金证券·2024-04-11 16:00Investment Rating - The report maintains a "Buy" rating for the company [2] Core Views - The company shows an improving gross margin trend and a solid market position with a recovery in market share [2][3] - In 2023, the company achieved a revenue of 22.589 billion RMB, a year-on-year increase of 19.66%, and a net profit of 1.850 billion RMB, up 17.20% year-on-year [3][6] - The company benefited from a continuous increase in downstream photovoltaic demand, with a shipment of photovoltaic film reaching 2.249 billion square meters, a 70% year-on-year increase [3] Summary by Sections Performance Overview - In Q4 2023, the company reported a revenue of 5.939 billion RMB, an 11% year-on-year increase, but a 2% decrease quarter-on-quarter [2] - The net profit for Q4 was 419 million RMB, a significant year-on-year increase of 828%, but a 23% decrease quarter-on-quarter [2] Operational Analysis - The company maintained a competitive advantage despite overall industry pressure, leading to an increase in market share and profitability [3] - The Q4 gross margin increased by 3.2 percentage points to 16.25%, while the net margin decreased by 2.0 percentage points to 7.03% due to non-recurring impairment losses and increased expenses [3] Product Segment Performance - The company achieved significant growth in various product segments, with photovoltaic backsheet shipments increasing by 23%, photosensitive dry film by 5%, and aluminum-plastic film by 68% in 2023 [3] - The company is now the second-largest in global backsheet sales and is expanding overseas production capacity [3] Profit Forecast and Valuation - The profit forecast for 2024 and 2025 has been revised down to 2.630 billion RMB and 3.310 billion RMB, respectively, with a new forecast for 2026 at 4.000 billion RMB [3][6] - The current stock price corresponds to a price-to-earnings ratio of 18, 15, and 12 times for 2024, 2025, and 2026, respectively [3]