CICC: Cuts the target price of CHINA EAST EDU (00667) by 37% to HKD 6, reiterates "Outperform Industry" rating.

China International Capital Corporation (CICC) released a research report stating that it roughly maintains the revenue and adjusted net profit forecasts for 2026 and 2027. It maintains a "outperforming the industry" rating for CHINA EAST EDU (00667), but due to the decline in average valuation in the sector, it has lowered the target price by 37% to HKD 6, which corresponds to an estimated adjusted enterprise value to EBITDA multiple of approximately 4.3 times for 2026. The number of new enrollments at CHINA EAST EDU is steadily increasing, and the course structure continues to optimize. Its revenue for the first half of the year rose by 10.6% year-on-year to RMB 2.42 billion, in line with the banks expectations; the adjusted net profit attributable to shareholders increased by 20.5% year-on-year to RMB 501 million, which exceeded the banks expectations, primarily due to a greater-than-expected improvement in gross margin.