Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. (688082.SH) receives approval for private placement, platform development strategy may accelerate once again.

On the evening of November 11, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. (hereinafter referred to as "Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc." and "the Company") disclosed a public announcement regarding the acceptance of the application for issuing A-shares to specific objects. According to the prospectus (draft), the total number of shares issued by Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. this time is 43,615,356 shares (including this number), accounting for no more than 10% of the total share capital of the Company before the issuance. The planned fundraising through the issuance of shares will not exceed RMB 4.5 billion. Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. is a semiconductor equipment company introduced as a key project under the Shanghai Government's Science and Technology Promotion Plan, mainly engaged in the development, manufacturing, and sales of semiconductor cleaning equipment, semiconductor plating equipment, vertical furnace series equipment, spin coating and photoresist track equipment, plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) equipment, stress-free polishing equipment, advanced back-end packaging equipment, and silicon substrate manufacturing process equipment that are crucial to the integrated circuit manufacturing industry. Since its establishment, the Company has always adhered to the development strategy of "technological differentiation, product platformization, and global customers," actively developing independent innovation, and continuously improving the iterative research and development of new processes and technologies. The Company's investment in research and development directly reflects its emphasis on technological innovation. From 2021 to 2023, the Company's R&D investments were RMB 278 million, RMB 428 million, and RMB 658 million respectively; by the third quarter of 2024, the Company's R&D investment had reached RMB 612 million, showing a steady upward trend. In addition to increasing investment in research and development, the Company continues to improve its research and development team structure, continuously training and introducing professional talents from the global industry. As of September 30, 2024, the Company has a total of 917 research and development personnel, accounting for 46.88% of the total number of employees. The Company and its subsidiaries hold 466 major patents, including 176 domestic patents and 290 international patents. Inventions patents total 464. Thanks to the continuous improvement in the overall research and development strength of the Company, new products continue to emerge. In September of this year, the Company launched the new Ultra C BEV-P panel edge etching equipment; in August, it launched the Ultra ECP AP-P panel-level plating equipment. These new products not only enrich the Company's advanced panel-level packaging product line but also help the Company tap into potential markets. At the same time, progress has been made in the Spin Coating and Photoresist Track Equipment and PECVD equipment, entering the customer verification stage smoothly. Furthermore, the Research and Development and Manufacturing Center of Acm Semiconductor Equipment in Lingang Project was officially completed and put into operation in October. The project consists of two research buildings, two factories, and one auxiliary factory. The A factory equipped with an intelligent logistics warehousing system has a production value of over 5 billion annually, with further potential growth. By the time the B factory is put into operation next year, the two factories can achieve a capacity of over 10 billion. With the breakthrough in production capacity, the strength of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. in platform development will be further enhanced, boosting the Company's confidence in future operations. It is worth noting that on the evening of November 7, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. disclosed an announcement once again raising its 2024 operating performance forecast. According to the announcement, based on the current progress of orders in hand, product delivery plans, and customer acceptance arrangements, the company has formed a clearer expectation of the number of devices that can be delivered and accepted by customers before the end of the year. Therefore, the forecast range for the Company's annual revenue in 2024 has been adjusted from the original range of RMB 5.3 billion to RMB 5.88 billion to a range of RMB 5.6 billion to RMB 5.88 billion. With this private placement, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. plans to allocate the raised funds to research and development and process testing platform construction projects, high-end semiconductor equipment iterative research and development projects, and to supplement working capital. From a long-term perspective, as the Company continues to improve its research and development technology and product diversification, coupled with the full production realization of the Lingang project in the future, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. will deepen its platform development, continuously strengthen its competitive barriers, and expand its market development space even further.