- Leapmotor achieved net income of RMB 80.9 million ($11.1 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, its positive quarterly bottom line since inception.
- Leapmotor said it achieved the profitability goal one year ahead of schedule, making it the second of China's new car-making forces to do so.
Leapmotor (HKG: 9863) saw a turnaround in quarterly profitability with record deliveries and improved gross margin as its product mix was optimized.
The Chinese new energy vehicle (NEV) maker achieved net income of RMB 80.9 million ($11.1 million) in the fourth quarter of 2024, the first time it has seen a positive quarterly bottom line since its inception in 2015, in line with a profit alert issued in January, according to a Hong Kong stock exchange announcement yesterday.
For comparison, Leapmotor reported a net loss of RMB 955 million in the fourth quarter of 2023 and a net loss of RMB 690 million in the third quarter of last year.
The company achieved its goal of making a quarterly profit turnaround one year ahead of schedule, making it the second of China's new car-making forces to achieve profitability, Leapmotor said in yesterday's announcement.
The fourth-quarter turnaround was mainly due to improved gross margin. Leapmotor's gross margin was a record 13.30 percent in the fourth quarter, up 6.6 percentage points from the fourth quarter of 2023 and up 5.2 percentage points from the third quarter of last year.
The improvement in financials was primarily due to significant growth in vehicle deliveries and higher-priced vehicles contributing more sales.
Leapmotor delivered a record 120,863 vehicles in the fourth quarter, an increase of 118.45 percent year-on-year and up 40.27 percent from the third quarter, according to previously announced data.
Leapmotor's revenue in the fourth quarter was a record RMB 13.46 billion, an increase of 155.00 percent year-on-year and up 36.50 percent from the third quarter.
For the full year 2024, the company delivered 293,724 vehicles, up 103.76 percent from 2023.
Leapmotor's C-series models delivered 225,071 vehicles in 2024, an increase of 112.9 percent over 2023.
Sales of C-series models contributed 76.6 percent of the year's deliveries, a 3.3 percentage point improvement over 2023, according to Leapmotor.
Leapmotor's current models delivered in China include the T03, C01, C10, C11, and C16, with all but the T03 offered in both battery electric vehicle (BEV) and extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) variants.
Last night, Leapmotor began pre-sales of the B10 SUV (sport utility vehicle), the first model in its B-series.
Notably, Leapmotor's R&D investment continues to grow, reaching a record RMB 895 million in the fourth quarter, up 43.77 percent year-on-year and up 14.76 percent from the third quarter.
Leapmotor is targeting sales of 500,000 to 600,000 units in 2025, the company's management said on an earnings call yesterday.
The company will strive to achieve its goal of full-year profitability in 2025, its management said.
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