18 July 2025 | 5:17PM HKT AMEC (688012.SS): Rev +51% YoY in 2Q; R&D expenses remain elevated on new product expansion; Buy AMEC pre-announced 2Q Rev of Rmb2.8bn (+51% YoY), which is largely in-line with GSe and Bloomberg consensus. 2Q GM was down to 38.5% (vs. 41.5% in 1Q25 and 38.2% in 2Q24). With R&D expenses remaining high at Rmb652mn (+84% YoY) resulting from new product developments, 2Q25 net income came in at Rmb367mn~417mn (+37%~+56% YoY). In 1H25, the company's etching equipment sales were Rmb3.8bn ...

Investment Rating - The report maintains a "Buy" rating for AMEC, indicating a positive outlook for the company's performance in the semiconductor industry [1][7][10]. Core Insights - AMEC is experiencing solid order growth driven by clients' capacity expansion and increasing adoption of domestic equipment in China. The company is actively expanding its product offerings, which include deposition, etch, and metrology & inspection tools [1][6]. - Management projects a revenue growth of over 30% year-on-year, supported by strong bookings from both memory and logic customers. The local supply ratio for advanced technologies is expected to grow significantly [6][7]. - The company is accelerating its R&D cycle for new products, reducing the development time from 2-3 years to 1.5-2 years, which is attributed to improved design processes and increased client collaboration [6][7]. Revenue and Orders Outlook - AMEC's management is optimistic about achieving over 30% year-on-year revenue growth, with a strong operational performance in the first half of the year and a solid outlook for the second half [6]. - The company anticipates continued growth from the increasing adoption of local equipment by Chinese customers, with significant room for growth in the local supply ratio, especially in advanced technologies [6]. Product Expansion - AMEC plans to enhance its product coverage in deposition tools to approximately 80% by 2026, up from around 30% currently. The company has begun generating revenues from its WU series deposition products in 2024 [6][7]. - The company is also developing next-generation etching tools and expanding into metrology and inspection tools, including the launch of a Critical Dimension Scanning Electron Microscope (CDSEM) [6][7]. R&D Process Acceleration - The new product development cycle has been shortened to 1.5-2 years, compared to the previous 2-3 years. This improvement is due to platform product design, increased client trust, and the integration of AI technology in simulations [6][7]. Valuation and Price Target - The 12-month target price for AMEC is set at Rmb275, based on a P/E ratio of 29x for 2029 estimates, reflecting an attractive valuation as the company trades below its historical average [8][10]. - The report indicates a potential upside of 52.3% from the current price of Rmb180.58 [10]. Financial Projections - Revenue projections for AMEC are as follows: Rmb9,065.2 million for 2024, Rmb12,590.1 million for 2025, Rmb16,330.5 million for 2026, and Rmb20,477.2 million for 2027 [10]. - EBITDA is projected to grow from Rmb1,560.9 million in 2024 to Rmb6,244.6 million by 2027 [10]. Conclusion - AMEC is positioned to benefit from the ongoing expansion of the semiconductor industry in China, with a strong focus on product development and local market penetration, making it a compelling investment opportunity [1][7][10].