[ET Net News Agency, 13 March 2020] Morgan Stanley lowered its target price for Great
Wall Motor (GWM)(02333) to HK$5 from HK$8 and downgraded its rating to "equal-weight" from
"overweight".
The research house said GWM's preliminary FY2019 results implied net profit per vehicle
of Rmb4.7k, down 23% from 6.1k in 3Q 2019. In 2020, amid the COVID-19 disruption, Morgan
expects a tough market environment for GWM, and it believes that the company might offer
meaningful discounts to sustain its sales volume.
As a result, Morgan expects continued pressure on GWM's profitability in 2020. It cut
its 2019 earnings forecast by 11% to be consistent with GWM's preliminary results. For
2020 and 2021, Morgan lowered its earnings forecasts by 30% and 26%, reflecting both the
COVID-19 disruption and the strong competition from Chang'an and JV brands. (KL)