2025-09-02 14:24Mengniu Dairy (2319.HK) Conference Call Summary Company Overview - Company: Mengniu Dairy - Ticker: 2319.HK - Market Cap: HK$59.5 billion / $7.6 billion - Enterprise Value: HK$79.5 billion / $10.2 billion - Industry: China Consumer Staples Key Takeaways from the Conference Call Sales and Revenue Guidance - Management guided for a mid-single-digit to high-single-digit percentage decline in top line for FY25, with liquid milk expected to decline slightly, narrowing from a -11% decline in 1H25 to a better performance in 2H25 [1] - The company remains cautious about gifting demand trends for the Mid-Autumn Festival in Q3 and for Q4 due to a later Chinese New Year [1] 2B Business Highlights - Mengniu expects its 2B overall sales to reach approximately Rmb10 billion in 2025, with a double-digit percentage year-on-year growth rate [1] - Breakdown of the Rmb10 billion sales target: 60% from liquid milk (mainly from coffee/tea chained stores and food service) and 40% from solid milk (driven by sales from Australian plants and Milkground cheese) [1] - Gross Profit Margin (GPM) for 2B business is expected to be lower than 2C, but Operating Profit Margin (OPM) remains healthy, particularly for the 2B liquid milk business, which can achieve around 5% Net Profit Margin (NPM) [1] Long-term Margin Opportunities - Management anticipates cheese sales to exceed Rmb5 billion, with Rmb2.3 billion achieved in 1H25, and ice cream sales to reach approximately Rmb6 billion, with Rmb3.9 billion in 1H25 [1] - Southeast Asia's EBITDA margin doubled last year with sales up by double digits, and NPM is nearing group-level [1] - Positive growth is expected to resume in the infant formula segment, contributing to long-term margin expansion from non-liquid milk business [1] Supply and Demand Dynamics - The winter season will be critical for observing supply/demand dynamics, with management noting a prolonged downcycle in 2025 YTD, showing a high-single-digit percentage year-on-year decline in demand for liquid milk [1] - Supply side is expected to cut by a low-single-digit percentage into Q3, with large-scale dairy farms reluctant to reduce herd size [1] - Potential supply/demand re-balancing opportunity is anticipated into mid-2026, with smaller dairy farms expected to exit the market [1] One-off Items and Losses - The company noted a significant narrowing of losses in the dry powder resale unit, expecting a 40-50% reduction in these losses [1] - Associate losses from Modern Dairy are expected to be smaller in 2H25 compared to 1H25, despite ongoing impairments from herd size cuts [1] - A one-off disposal gain from the sale of a New Zealand factory is anticipated to be less than Rmb100 million in 2H25 [1] Financial Projections - Revenue Forecasts: - FY24: Rmb88,674.8 million - FY25E: Rmb82,590.5 million - FY26E: Rmb86,527.8 million - FY27E: Rmb90,594.7 million [3] - EBITDA Forecasts: - FY24: Rmb4,578.4 million - FY25E: Rmb8,992.1 million - FY26E: Rmb10,393.5 million - FY27E: Rmb11,266.0 million [3] - EPS Forecasts: - FY24: Rmb0.03 - FY25E: Rmb1.00 - FY26E: Rmb1.37 - FY27E: Rmb1.60 [3] Risks and Considerations - Key downside risks include slower-than-expected premium demand, slower recovery in dairy demand, increased competition in the dairy industry, and wider losses in new categories [27] Conclusion Mengniu Dairy is navigating a challenging market environment with cautious revenue projections for FY25, while focusing on growth in its 2B business and long-term margin opportunities. The company is also addressing supply/demand dynamics and potential losses in specific segments, indicating a strategic approach to stabilize and grow its business in the coming years.