Financial Services Association, March 22 (Reporter Luo Yichen) Relying on the strength of online channels, Baiya Shares (003006.SZ), the “first share of sanitary napkins”, returned to a profit growth trajectory in 2023. Supported by favorable performance, the company drastically increased its dividend ratio and plans to distribute a cash dividend of 236 million yuan, equivalent to 99.13% of its net profit due to mother for the whole year.

On the evening of March 22, Baiya Co., Ltd. released its 2023 performance report, achieving revenue of 2.144 billion yuan, an increase of 33% over the previous year, and realized net profit of 238 million yuan, an increase of 27.21% over the previous year. Based on research reports from various brokerage firms, this performance is basically in line with market expectations.

It is worth noting that although profits have returned to growth, the company's net profit margin has not returned to an optimal level. In 2021, with revenue of 1,463 million yuan, Baiya Co., Ltd. generated net profit of 228 million yuan, with a net operating profit margin of 15.58%. In 2022, this figure fell to 11.60%, but last year it declined further, with a net profit margin of 11.10% for the whole year.

Behind the decline in the company's profitability is a sharp rise in its marketing investment. A Financial Services Association reporter noticed that while offline channel expansion is relatively slow, Baiya Co., Ltd.'s online channel business growth can be described as advancing by leaps and bounds. In 2023, the company's e-commerce channel revenue doubled year-on-year, reaching 748 million yuan, accounting for nearly 35%. It surpassed the Sichuan and Chongqing region for the first time and became the company's largest channel.

Corresponding to the strong performance of e-commerce channels, due to increased marketing investment, the company's sales expenses rose sharply from 395 million yuan in 2022 to 669 million yuan, an increase of nearly 70% over the previous year. In the context of accelerated online consumption, online channels are expected to continue to be the main driving force for the company's performance growth, but at the same time, as the marginal effects of marketing decrease, the company also urgently needs to solve the problem of relying on marketing to drive performance.

Third-party data shows that in the first quarter of this year, online sanitary napkin sales continued to rise, and the market share of the Liberty Point brand under Baiya Co., Ltd. also increased significantly. According to Sandalwood Rosewood e-commerce data monitoring, online sanitary napkin sales increased 15% year-on-year between January 1 and March 14. Among them, live e-commerce channels performed particularly well. In terms of the brand competition pattern, P&G's Hushubao brand fell to number one in the e-commerce market for the first time, while the market share of the Liberty Point brand under Baiya Co., Ltd. increased significantly, reaching more than 10%.

Despite mixed results, Baiya Co., Ltd. still chose to pay big dividends. Since its listing in 2020, the company has maintained high dividends, and there have been no adjustments due to a brief decline in performance. The first three years were “10 payouts of 3 yuan” (tax included), and the annual dividend amount stabilized at 129 million yuan; in 2023, the company increased its dividend strength to “10 payments of 5 yuan” (tax included), dividing almost all of the current period into the mother's net profit. According to this calculation, Feng Yonglin, the actual controller of the company, was able to receive nearly 100 million yuan in dividends through Chongqing Fuyuan Trading Co., Ltd.