business · AM730

Pop Mart H1 Profit Up 10% but Misses Forecast; Star People IP Surges 480%

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Pop Mart H1 Profit Up 10% but Misses Forecast; Star People IP Surges 480%

Summary

Hong Kong-listed Pop Mart (stock code: 9992) released its interim results for the six months ending 30 June 2024, reporting a net profit of 5.04 billion yuan (RMB, same below), representing a year-on-year increase of 10.1%. However, this figure fell short of market expectations. The company's revenue reached 17.17 billion yuan, marking growth of 23.8%, with China market contributing 71% of total sales. Despite the revenue increase, gross margin declined by 0.6 percentage points year-on-year to 69.7%, primarily due to a decreased proportion of overseas high-margin sales and rising raw material costs.

Key Points

  • Pop Mart reported H1 2024 net profit of 5.04 billion yuan, up 10.1% YoY, with adjusted net profit of 5.16 billion yuan under non-IFRS standards
  • Revenue breakdown by region shows China at 12.2 billion yuan (+47.3%), Asia Pacific at 2.58 billion yuan (-9.7%), Americas at 1.89 billion yuan (-16.3%), Europe & others at 506 million yuan (+5.9%)
  • Star People IP generated 2.65 billion yuan in revenue, surging 580% YoY to become the company's fastest-growing intellectual property
  • THE MONSTERS franchise (including LABUBU) recorded 4.45 billion yuan, declining 7.5% YoY, while MOLLY IP also fell 33.6% to 901 million yuan
  • Pop Mart City theme park opened upgraded areas featuring THE MONSTERS and DIMOO IPs after one year of operation

Why It Matters

The contrasting performance between Star People's explosive growth and the decline in flagship IPs like THE MONSTERS and MOLLY signals a shifting consumer preference landscape for Pop Mart. The significant drop in Americas (-16.3%) and Asia Pacific (-9.7%) revenues, attributed to reduced external traffic dividends and normalizing IP popularity, raises questions about the sustainability of the company's overseas expansion strategy. Investors will closely monitor whether Star People can sustain its momentum as the company's new growth engine while Pop Mart navigates cooling enthusiasm for its established characters.
The contrasting performance between Star People's explosive growth and the decline in flagship IPs like THE MONSTERS and MOLLY signals a shifting consumer preference landscape for Pop Mart. The significant drop in Americas (-16.3%) and Asia Pacific (-9.7%) revenues, attributed to reduced external traffic dividends and normalizing IP popularity, raises questions about the sustainability of the company's overseas expansion strategy. Investors will closely monitor whether Star People can sustain its momentum as the company's new growth engine while Pop Mart navigates cooling enthusiasm for its established characters.