According to a research report released by Nomura, maintaining the “buy” rating of Sinopharm Holdings (01099), its profit forecast for this fiscal year was slightly lowered by 1.9%/1.7%, 4.2% and 4% lower than market expectations, to reflect the increase in gross margin pressure brought about by volume procurement (VBP) of pharmaceuticals and medical equipment in the second half of this year and beyond. The target price fell from HK$36.28 to HK$33.31.
The bank said it is still optimistic that the company will achieve a leading position with growth above average in the industry, and believes it is an alternative investment target for the growing mainland healthcare industry. It is also believed that the current anti-corruption campaign in the mainland affected the growth of Sinopharm in the third quarter, while the base was high in the same period last year due to high demand for products related to epidemic prevention. It is expected that the third quarter will achieve revenue of 152 billion yuan, an increase of 5% over the previous year, and a decrease of 2% from quarter to quarter; it is estimated that the company's revenue for the first nine months increased 11% year on year to 453 billion yuan. In addition, the company's net profit for the third quarter is expected to reach 2.2 billion yuan, an increase of 4% over the previous year, and net profit for the first nine months to reach 6.35 billion yuan.