SF Intra-city (09699.HK) Achieved High-Quality Revenue Growth of around 20% in the First Half of 2024, Net Profit Doubled

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Aug 29, 2024, 03:49 ET

Net profit attributable to owners of the Company Reaching a Record High of about RMB 62.17 million
Enhancing innovative digital intelligence to improve operational efficiency, Supporting long-term, healthy and high-quality growth

Results Highlights

Revenue increased by 19.6% year-on-year ("YoY") to approximately RMB6,878.5 million, with order volume increased by more than 30%.
Gross profit and gross profit margin from continuing operations both improved significantly, gross profit increased by 23.4% YoY to approximately RMB 473.3 million; and gross profit margin was 6.9%.
Net profit attributable to owners of the Company was approximately RMB 62.2 million in 2024 H1, increased by 105.1% YoY, exceeding the overall net profit level of 2023, setting a new historical record high. and net profit margin reached 0.9%.
Revenue from intra-city delivery was approximately RMB 4,038 million, representing a YoY growth of 19.2%.
Revenue from last-mile delivery services amounted to approximately RMB 2,840.5 million, increased by 20.3% YoY.
Number of active consumers grew to 21.9 million people for the past 12 months ended 30 June 2024.
Revenue from intra-city delivery service for merchants increased to approximately RMB 2,874.1 million, grew by 18.8% YoY; Revenue from intra-city delivery service for consumers increased to approximately RMB 1,163.9 million, grew by 20.1% YoY.
Number of active merchants on the platform reached 550,000 for the 12 months ended 30 June 2024.
Further strengthened the construction of the on-demand delivery network and service capabilities in lower-tier markets, covered more than 1,200 counties throughout the country, reaching a county coverage rate of 68%, and the revenue from such areas increased by 51% YoY.
In 2024 H1, cash inflow from operating activities was approximately RMB 99.2 million, marking a YoY increase of 189.0%. As of 30 June 2024, cash and cash equivalents and short-term financial investments were approximately RMB 1,452.7 million and RMB 912.5 million respectively. The healthy cash flow reflects excellent business quality and operational resilience.

HONG KONG, Aug. 29, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hangzhou SF Intra-city Industrial Co., Ltd. ("SF Intra-city" or the "Group"; Stock Code: 9699.HK), the largest third-party on-demand delivery service provider in China, announced its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2024 (the "Reporting Period" or the "first half of 2024"). During the Reporting Period, the Group's has achieved satisfactory results, revenue from continuing operations increased by 19.6% to approximately RMB 6,875.5 million compared to the same period last year, with order volume increased by more than 30% compared to the same period last year. Gross profit amounted to approximately RMB 473.3 million, representing an increase of 23.4% YoY and the gross profit margin improved by 0.2 percentage points of the same period last year to 6.9%. During the Reporting Period, net profit attributable to owners of the Company doubled to approximately RMB 62.2 million, representing an increase of 105.1%, exceeding the overall net profit level of 2023, setting a new historical record high.

The net profit growth was attributable to: (i) strong adherence to the business goal of healthy and high-quality growth, with order volume significantly increased by more than 30% compared to the same period last year, driving the growth of revenue and further unleashing the benefits of economies of scale and network effects; (ii) optimization of business structure, with increased contributions to revenue from premium customers; and (iii) technological advancements and lean management driving operational quality and efficiency, improving operating performance, maintaining gross profit margins and expense ratios at healthy level and boosting profitability. Net profit margin has further increased to 0.9%.

In the first half of 2024, the Group achieved a cash inflow from operating activities of RMB 99.2 million, marking a YoY increase of 189.0%. As of June 30, 2024, our cash and cash equivalents and short-term financial investments were RMB 1,452.7 million and RMB 912.5 million respectively, indicating a healthy cash flow and ample fund reserves, fully demonstrating healthy operations.

The management team of SF intra-city commented, "In the first half of 2024, the Group's profits continued to grow. Firmly rooted in the local lifestyle services industry, the organization proactively identified and capitalized on evolving market demands and growth opportunities. As part of the intra-city delivery infrastructure, we remain steadfast in executing our strategic plans, committed to serving every customer and supporting our riders in delivering every order. These focused efforts have culminated in favorable business results for our company. We stay committed to our operational goal of 'high-quality and healthy growth.' We will embrace market opportunities in the diversified traffic, local retail development, accelerated intra-city logistics, and the ongoing expansion of third-party on-demand delivery services. As local lifestyle consumption scenarios and consumption patterns continue to evolve, we will remain focused on our core value contributions within the industry and urban operations. We will also strive to expand the boundaries of on-demand fulfillment services, enhance our technological capabilities, and collaborate with more business partners. Together, we will safeguard the prosperous development of the new consumption trend and better fulfill our mission of 'bringing enjoyable lifestyle to your fingertips'."

Intra-city delivery deepened cooperation with KA and major traffic platforms, and adopted flexible pricing strategies to enhance product competitiveness

During the Reporting Period, revenue from intra-city delivery service increased by 19.2% to approximately RMB 4,038.0 million. The healthy growth was attributable to: (i) robust demand for food delivery services, with consumers expanding the habit of on-demand delivery into retail consumption scenarios, resulting in a rapid growth in non-food delivery scenarios, recording a 32.4% YoY increase in revenue to approximately RMB 1,665.6 million in the first half of 2024; (ii) comprehensive capabilities in logistics infrastructure enable the provision of professional and high-quality on-demand delivery services to a diverse customer base. This approach deepened cooperation with key account (KA) customers and major traffic platforms, while expanding the scale of active merchants and consumers; (iii) dedicated expansion in lower-tier cities and counties, which further strengthened market penetration in county areas, whereby county-level revenue which grew by 51% YoY in the first half of 2024; (iv) the hour-level delivery network which effectively met the accelerating timeliness of intra-city express delivery; and (v) the adoption of flexible pricing strategies which enhanced product competitiveness.

Revenue from intra-city to merchants reached approximately RMB 2,870 million and the active merchant base continued to grow

SF Intra-city empowers merchants with an open and inclusive on-demand delivery network along with professional, efficient, and comprehensive delivery solutions, to maintain extensive cooperation with merchants. After the optimization of the business structure and the expansion of the base of cooperating merchants in the earlier stage, the revenue from intra-city delivery service for merchants significantly improved and increased. During the Reporting Period, such revenue reached approximately RMB 2,874.1 million, representing a YoY growth of 18.8%.

In terms of merchant cooperation, SF Intra-city capitalized on market opportunities driven by decentralization of traffic, effectively meeting the needs of various merchants and platforms. The Group's market share in cooperation with top-tier customers consistently increased, maintaining leading market share with an addition of over 6,000 new cooperating stores during the Reporting Period. The Group also maintained close cooperation with various major traffic platforms, actively exploring new business models in local lifestyle services to meet all types of to-home delivery needs on the platforms. As of 30 June 2024, the active merchants on the platform in the past 12 months reached 550,000, with a YoY increase of 45.0%. Among them, KA customers showed robust growth momentum, with revenue from newly contracted customers achieving high double-digit growth and achieving enhanced business stability given the increasing proportion of chain customers.

In terms of scenario coverage, SF Intra-city leveraged multi-scenario capabilities and optimized product services around key categories. The Group focused on key industries, important holidays, hot topics, and emerging scenarios to enhance its differentiated service capabilities. In the first half of 2024, revenue from tea and beverage delivery increased by 60% YoY, and retail categories such as supermarkets and convenience stores, cakes and bakeries, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics achieved high double-digit growth in revenue YoY.

In terms of geographical coverage, the Group further strengthened the construction of on-demand delivery network and service capabilities in lower-tier markets, providing more convenient on-demand delivery services for differentiated local lifestyle scenarios among counties. During the Reporting Period, the Group covered more than 1,200 counties throughout the country, reaching a county coverage rate of 68%. With deepened development and stable operation in the covered county areas, as well as developed various new scenario businesses in lower-tier markets, the revenue from such areas increased by 51% YoY.

As one of the most widely and deeply connected third-party on-demand delivery service providers, SF Intra-city is actively involved on an accessible platform for collaborating with local lifestyle service vendors. By promoting the co-construction of ecosystems with various major local lifestyle service platforms, SF Intra-city actively grasps the trend of diversified traffic including (i) Douyin, (ii) Alibaba, (iii) WeChat and (iv) Didi Fast Delivery, providing intra-city delivery services nationwide and further expanding the multi-faceted user service ecosystem. Currently, the Group continues exploring opportunities and experimenting with different new collaborative scenarios alongside multiple strategic partners. By harnessing high quality and efficient on-demand delivery experiences, the Group aims to contribute to the thriving new ecosystem of local lifestyle services.

SF intra-city rapidly expanded and densified nationwide delivery network, leading to an increase in business districts coverage and order density. During the Reporting Period, the Group strengthened operational efficiency in business districts around top customers' stores, effectively addressing pain points such as peak order overload, long waiting times for meals, and idle personnel during off peak hours. Both parties were able to achieve cost reduction and efficiency improvement. The number of profitable business districts increased, and flexibility of the delivery network remains significantly advantageous. During the Reporting Period, fluctuations in the fulfillment in-time rate during holidays and poor weather conditions were less than one and three percentage points, respectively. The fulfillment in-time rate was approximately 95%, with an average delivery time of 22 minutes for orders within 3 kilometers.

SF intra-city also strategically partnered with participants in the SF Holding Group's ecosystem to offer an integrated supply chain solution for customers by combining "warehousing + transport+ intra-city on-demand delivery". Customers can choose suitable logistics products more conveniently given the integration of resources and capabilities within the SF Holding Group, helping both SF intra-city and the SF Holding Group in jointly expanding the customer base and enhancing customer loyalty. In the first half of 2024, the number of Credit Customers placing orders using the intra-city on demand delivery service and their order frequency both increased significantly. The external incremental revenue brought by the Credit Customers, being served together with SF Holding Group, recorded a YoY growth of 52% to approximately RMB 160.7 million.

Demand for intra-city delivery for consumers accelerated, drove a 20.1% YoY increase in revenue to about RMB 1,160 million

For consumers, SF intra-city is committed to creating an industry-leading and professional on-demand fulfillment service. The Group's "deliver for me, fetch for me, purchase for me, and solve for me" services cover personal life and work scenarios such as daily errands, medical healthcare, and business agency, reinforcing the brand image of "SF Intra-city, the first choice for urgent delivery of valuable items." In the first half of 2024, the revenue from intra-city delivery for consumers grew by 20.1% YoY to approximately RMB 1,163.9 million.

During the Reporting Period, the Group further enhanced its understanding of consumers and proactively captured new market opportunities. The demand for delivery services from individual customers under corporate scenarios has been further released along the formation of consumption habits. The Group focused on strengthening the service capabilities in central business districts ("CBDs") and office areas, ensuring quality pick-up and delivery experiences and delivery safety by standardizing rider image, equipment, language, delivery packaging materials and delivery operations, etc., establishing industry service standards for high-end business customers. Through channel partnerships, the reach to intra-city express delivery users increased, allowing consumers to choose "delivery within an hour" services on the user interface when placing orders, to meet the need for accelerating timeliness. The Group also expanded the coverage distance of the "delivery within an hour" service. The order volume of "delivery within an hour" service quickly doubled during the Reporting Period, driving a strong YoY growth in revenue from this service.

The Group proactively optimized the brand promotion and channel marketing strategies, also intensified the collaboration with external channels, particularly in terms of new customer acquisition and joint marketing initiatives. Through a variety of ways such as discount promotions, community engagement programs, and platform collaboration campaigns, the Group successfully enhanced both customer acquisition efficiency and new user conversion rates. As the user base expands, the Group increasingly focused on improving service quality and implementing refined user operations and optimizing the membership system to boost the retention and repurchasing rates of existing customers. As of 30 June 2024, the scale of active consumers exceeded 21.9 million in the past 12 months.

Revenue from last-mile delivery service significantly grew by 20.3% to about RMB2,840million

In the first half of 2024, the revenue of last-mile delivery service recorded a YoY growth of 20.3% to approximately RMB 2,840.5 million, which was mainly attributable to: (i) the steady increase in cooperation scale and delivery volume with major customers by fully leveraging the flexibility and cost advantages of the delivery network and working closely during peak order periods, holidays and e-commerce delivery; and (ii) revenue from intra-city express delivery scenarios such as "parcels collection" and "delivery within half a day" doubled compared to the same period last year, maintaining rapid growth. Notably, for the parcels collection service, the Group expanded service areas and strengthened synergies with major customers in capacity management, resulting in daily average order pickup volume exceeding one million during the first half of 2024.

Achieved continuous advancement in digitalization operations and AI decision-making to enhance delivery efficiency and reduce costs

SF intra-city is committed to advancing digital operations and AI decision-making intelligence at various stages of business. The Group's City Logistics System ("CLS") achieved collaborative response in the three core processes, including intelligent business planning and marketing management, integrated rider dispatch and intelligent order distribution, and intelligent operational optimization. Based on big data analysis and AI algorithms, the system can effectively predict order fluctuations, and comprehensively coordinate factors such as front-end sales and marketing strategy, rider distribution and dispatch, route planning, willingness to pick up and subsidies, waiting times at the store, and delivery times. The system optimally matches orders with riders in different industries, scenarios, and complex delivery networks.

The Group will continue to strengthen connections with various channels, platforms, and private domains for order sources, providing intelligent distribution and planning system services to help merchants improve digital operational efficiency and generate revenue in the trend of decentralized traffic. During the Reporting Period, the Group focused on enhancing the capacity matching and delivery capabilities for medium and long distance orders, improving the fulfillment efficiency of long-distance orders, and reducing delivery costs to better meet the citywide delivery needs of merchants.

Meanwhile, SF intra-city also continued to explore the commercial potential of smart logistics and unmanned delivery technology. During the Reporting Period, the Group launched pilot programs in several cities to explore unmanned vehicles delivery among transit hubs and local delivery outlets under our last mile delivery service. Meanwhile, the Group developed relevant technological capabilities to realize functions such as vehicle dispatch and operational monitoring. By analyzing actual fulfillment scenarios and leveraging data insights, we constantly refined operational strategies to enhance the efficiency and stability of unmanned vehicle deliveries and reduce operational costs. The Group aims to further expedite deployment with the long-term goal of making unmanned delivery as a complementary solution to the existing rider network, ultimately enhancing overall efficiency.

Included in the Hang Seng Index series, reflecting recognition from capital market of business performance and prospects

From 30 November 2023 to 26 July 26 2024, based on market conditions, SF intra-city made a series of H-share repurchases. The repurchases demonstrated the Board's confidence in the long term development prospects of the business, which ultimately benefits the Company and creates value for the shareholders.

Besides, based on the results of the quarterly review of the Hang Seng Family of Indexes announced by Hang Seng Indexes Company Limited on 16 August 2024, the Group has been included as a constituent stock of the Hang Seng Family of Indexes including the Hang Seng Composite Index, with effect from September 9, 2024. Following the inclusion of the Group in the Hang Seng Composite Index, the Group's stocks will be eligible for trading on "Stock Connect," The inclusion reflects the capital market's recognition of the Group's business performance and growth outlook.

Looking ahead, the management team of SF intra-city said, "We will embrace market opportunities in the diversified traffic, local retail development, accelerated intra-city logistics, and the ongoing expansion of third-party on-demand delivery services. We will continue to expand on a large-scale, covering a wide range of scenarios, providing excellent services and establishing a solid network, to enhance medium to long-term revenue and profit potential. The Group will also continue to invest part of the profit margins brought by operational efficiency improvements and cost reductions into business development and lean operations to form a virtuous cycle of operations. SF Intra-city will also adapt to evolving consumer trends, focusing on serving customers, industries, and society, creating more flexible income opportunities, and generating broader value for our customers and shareholders."

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SOURCE SF Intra-city