HK/China Equity Long-Short

Osbert Tang, CFA

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/luckin-coffee-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28046:1" rel="noopener">Luckin Coffee (LKNCY US)</a> concluded FY23 with a 203.3% surge in non-GAAP net profit to Rmb3.2bn, benefiting from higher store count and monthly transacting customers.</li>
<li>Luckin plans to lift store count by at least 23%, with total to reach over 20,000 in FY24. Product innovation, promotional discount reduction, and better store efficiency are profit drivers. </li>
<li>Net cash reached Rmb3.8bn, or 7% of market cap. With a consensus EPS forecast of 28% CAGR in the next two years, its 15.1x and 11.7x PERs are not stretched.</li>
</ul>



Luckin Coffee (LKNCY US) concluded FY23 with a 203.3% surge in non-GAAP net profit to Rmb3.2bn, benefiting from higher store count and monthly transacting customers.
Luckin plans to lift store count by at least 23%, with total to reach over 20,000 in FY24. Product innovation, promotional discount reduction, and better store efficiency are profit drivers. 
Net cash reached Rmb3.8bn, or 7% of market cap. With a consensus EPS forecast of 28% CAGR in the next two years, its 15.1x and 11.7x PERs are not stretched.


Luckin Coffee (LKNCY US): Feeling Lucky in a Challenging Market

Blue Lotus China New Economy Research, Blue Lotus Research Institute

Eric Wen

Blue Lotus China New Economy Research

China growth and global non-US Internet equities

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Blue Lotus Research is a Hong Kong Type 4 Licensed investment advisory firm focusing on Chinese growth equities and global non-US Internet equities

<ul>
<li>In 4Q23, we expect Luckin Coffee revenue to increase 93% YoY to RMB7.1bn, and expect GPM/OPM to decline (5.8)/(1.3) ppt YoY to 19.0%/8.2%, respectively. </li>
<li>We cut 4Q23 operating income by 12%. In 2024, we raised our revenue estimate by 5% due to the speed up of new store opening schedule. </li>
<li>Furthermore, as price competition eased, we expect Luckin to offer less low-priced drinks, thus driving up OPM in 2024.</li>
</ul>


In 4Q23, we expect Luckin Coffee revenue to increase 93% YoY to RMB7.1bn, and expect GPM/OPM to decline (5.8)/(1.3) ppt YoY to 19.0%/8.2%, respectively. 
We cut 4Q23 operating income by 12%. In 2024, we raised our revenue estimate by 5% due to the speed up of new store opening schedule. 
Furthermore, as price competition eased, we expect Luckin to offer less low-priced drinks, thus driving up OPM in 2024.


[Luckin Coffee(LKNCY US, BUY, TP US$43) TP Change]: Weak Earnings in 4Q23 but Better Outlook in 2024

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Sumeet Singh

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Event-Driven

Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial / Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/sichuan-baicha-baidao-industrial-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:40029:1" rel="noopener">Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial (2555 HK)</a> raised around US$330m in its Hong Kong IPO, in April 2024. The lockup on its pre-IPO investors is set to expire soon</li>
<li>SBBI sells new-style tea drinks through its ChaPanda stores. According to F&amp;S, SBBI ranked third in China’s new-style tea shop market in 2023, with a market share of 6.8%</li>
<li>In this note, we will talk about the lockup dynamics and possible placement.</li>
</ul>



Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial (2555 HK) raised around US$330m in its Hong Kong IPO, in April 2024. The lockup on its pre-IPO investors is set to expire soon
SBBI sells new-style tea drinks through its ChaPanda stores. According to F&amp;S, SBBI ranked third in China’s new-style tea shop market in 2023, with a market share of 6.8%
In this note, we will talk about the lockup dynamics and possible placement.


Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial IPO Lockup - Steep Losses for Pre-IPO Investors

<ul>
<li>Luckin’s SSSG declined 20.9%YoY in the peak season, indicating diseconomies of scale for Luckin and a deteriorated competitive environment. We do not expect a quick turnaround in the near term.</li>
<li>We think Luckin has limited capability to further raise its prices in 3Q24, and expect its NPM to be 11.9%/7.1% in 3Q24/4Q24 as the new norm.</li>
<li>We keep SELL rating and lower TP to US$16.5/ADS. The stock trading at 20x/16x PE in 2024/2025, and we expect the NI to increase 15%CAGR in the next 2 years.</li>
</ul>


Luckin’s SSSG declined 20.9%YoY in the peak season, indicating diseconomies of scale for Luckin and a deteriorated competitive environment. We do not expect a quick turnaround in the near term.
We think Luckin has limited capability to further raise its prices in 3Q24, and expect its NPM to be 11.9%/7.1% in 3Q24/4Q24 as the new norm.
We keep SELL rating and lower TP to US$16.5/ADS. The stock trading at 20x/16x PE in 2024/2025, and we expect the NI to increase 15%CAGR in the next 2 years.


[Luckin Coffee (LKNCY US, SELL, TP US$16.5) TP Change]: Milkteaization Diminishes Differentiation

HK/China Healthcare Analyst (ex-Fosun Pharma)

Xinyao (Criss) Wang

Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>Chagee may think that US IPO will help it gain greater imagination space/higher valuation. Although the tariff war is “a big surprise”, conservative IPO pricing still secure a good debut.</li>
<li>If Chagee can successfully achieve internationalization and reverse the trend of declining performance, its market value could reach US$10.9 billion. However, Chinese concept stocks would still face valuation discounts.</li>
<li>If same store GMV fails to stabilize, or overseas market penetration is lower-than-expected, or conflict between China and the US escalates, share price would face correction, with valuation falling below Starbucks.</li>
</ul>


Chagee may think that US IPO will help it gain greater imagination space/higher valuation. Although the tariff war is “a big surprise”, conservative IPO pricing still secure a good debut.
If Chagee can successfully achieve internationalization and reverse the trend of declining performance, its market value could reach US$10.9 billion. However, Chinese concept stocks would still face valuation discounts.
If same store GMV fails to stabilize, or overseas market penetration is lower-than-expected, or conflict between China and the US escalates, share price would face correction, with valuation falling below Starbucks.


Chagee Holdings - Thoughts on the IPO Debut and the Valuation Outlook

China

Luckin Coffee Inc. provides non-alcoholic beverages. The Company offers various types of coffee. Luckin Coffee serves customers in China.

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Luckin Coffee (LKNCY US)