BOCOM INTL: Maintains a "Buy" rating on Great Wall Motor (02333) with a target price of HK$17.36.

BOCOM INTL released a research report stating that they are maintaining a "buy" rating for Great Wall Motor (02333) with a target price of 17.36 Hong Kong dollars. Great Wall Motor's process of upgrading to high-end and intelligent vehicles has been smooth, and with their rugged off-road models such as Tank 300 and Tank 500, they have dominated the off-road vehicle market in China and successfully expanded into the high-end off-road vehicle market. In terms of global expansion, Great Wall Motor has established production bases and research centers in Russia, Thailand, India, Brazil, and other places, achieving localized production and sales. The bank believes that the increase in the proportion of high-end models and the export layout are expected to support profit growth. BOCOM INTL's main points are as follows: Benefiting from export and product structure improvement, strong performance is expected in 2024. Great Wall Motor released earnings forecast, expecting to achieve a net profit attributable to shareholders of 12.4 billion to 13 billion yuan in 2024, an increase of 5.378 billion to 5.978 billion yuan compared to 2023, a year-on-year increase of 76.60% to 85.14%. The non-GAAP net profit is 9.4 billion to 10 billion yuan, an increase of 4.566 billion to 5.166 billion yuan compared to 2023, a year-on-year increase of 94.47% to 106.88%. Based on the median of the performance forecast, Great Wall Motor's net profit attributable to shareholders/non-GAAP net profit in the fourth quarter of 2024 is 2.27 billion yuan/1.3 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 12.1%/29.2%. Although Great Wall Motor's sales remain stable in 2024 (cumulative sales year-on-year +0.21%), the sales of high-priced models have increased significantly, while the proportion of exports has also shown a clear improvement, ensuring a strong profit trend for the entire year of 2024. The performance in 2024 and the fourth quarter generally meet the bank's expectations. Tank brand sales up, CKH HOLDINGS export performance impressive. In 2024, Great Wall sold 1.2333 million new cars, of which 0.3218 million were new energy vehicles, an increase of 22.82% year-on-year; overseas sales reached 0.4531 million units, an increase of 43.39% year-on-year. Sales of vehicles priced above 200,000 reached 0.3096 million units, a year-on-year increase of 37.13%, accounting for 25.1% of total sales. Great Wall Motor has made significant progress in the high-end branding, with the Tank brand being a highlight in high-end models, achieving annual sales of 0.231 million units, a year-on-year increase of 42.12%, making a significant contribution to the company's profits. Looking ahead to 2025, under the promotion of new energy, intelligentization, and globalization strategies, Great Wall Motor will launch multiple new models and technological platforms to further enrich its product matrix. The Tank brand 500 Hi4-Z was officially launched on January 1, 2025, and the Tank 400/700 Hi4-Z is planned to be launched in 2025 with the Hi4-Z technology, further enhancing power performance and pure electric endurance. As for the Haval brand, the Haval Prowess MAX will see a major upgrade version, with a comprehensive redesign of the exterior and interior, and the Haval H7 Hi4 will be reintroduced as a stylish crossover SUV.