Net profit more than doubled, FENBI(02469)2024 first half revenue reached 16.3 billion yuan.

On September 20th, FENBI (02469) released its 2024 interim report on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. In the first half of 2024, FENBI's revenue was 1.63 billion yuan, with a net profit of 280 million yuan, a significant increase of 240.9% year-on-year. Adjusted net profit was 350 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 21.2%. Regarding the reasons for the revenue fluctuations, FENBI mentioned in the announcement that the decrease in concentration in the recruitment exam training industry has put some pressure on the industry's overall unit price. It is worth noting that the other two companies in the public exam sector, Offcn Education Technology and Cendes Co., Ltd., also mentioned this in their recent financial reports. In the first half of 2024, Offcn Education Technology's revenue was 1.448 billion yuan, a decrease of 16.23% year-on-year; Cendes Co., Ltd. had revenue of 1.506 billion yuan, both of which had lower revenue scales than FENBI. On the other hand, FENBI, Cendes Co., Ltd., and Offcn Education Technology had net profits of 280 million yuan, 122 million yuan, and 116 million yuan respectively. FENBI's profitability is in the lead, with net profit surpassing the sum of the latter two. FENBI stated that regardless of changes in the overall environment and industry environment, the demand for high-quality teaching services from users remains unchanged. Users are willing to pay for truly good services, even at a premium. At this level, AI has become an important factor affecting FENBI's revenue. In 2024, FENBI launched its first self-developed domain-specific large model in the field of vocational education, and introduced AI teacher products. The announcement disclosed that the significant increase in net profit was due to the substantial improvement in teaching efficiency empowered by artificial intelligence technology and other online technologies, resulting in a overall enhancement of FENBI's corporate efficiency and significant cost control effects. Meanwhile, FENBI's AI teachers have started charging fees to end-users. Guosheng Securities analysis points out that FENBI's flagship product, the system class with AI products, has raised prices by 31% to 1280 yuan, which is expected to drive further revenue growth in the second half of the year. According to data from the Beijing News, the number of people passing the national exam in 2024 reached 3.033 million, an increase of 16.8% year-on-year, with a recruitment ratio of 77:1 (compared to 70:1 in the same period last year). The popularity of recruitment exams continues to grow, and the demand for exam preparation among candidates is also increasing. As of June 30, 2024, FENBI had an average of 9.2 million monthly active users. Furthermore, FENBI continues its ongoing buyback program, reflecting the company's confidence in its development. According to previous disclosures by FENBI, as of August 9, 2024, FENBI had repurchased and cancelled 54.23 million ordinary shares, with a total repurchase amount of approximately 230 million Hong Kong dollars. In May of this year, FENBI announced a buyback plan, with plans to repurchase company shares worth no more than 300 million Hong Kong dollars on the open market by May 12, 2025.