(Image source: Visual China)
On May 28, the New Higher Education Group released its 2023/2024 interim report for the year ended February 29, 2024.
Financial reports show that during the reporting period, the New Higher Education Group's revenue was RMB 1,311 billion, an increase of 13.8% over RMB 1.152 billion in the same period last year, mainly due to the steady increase in tuition and accommodation revenue.
According to the interim report, the main operating costs of the New Higher Education Group in the first half of the fiscal year increased by 12.9% to 790 million yuan from 700 million yuan in the same period last year. Regarding the increase in main operating costs, the New Higher Education Group stated that labor-related costs increased 10.5% compared to the same period last year, mainly due to continuous upgrading of the campus environment, the renewal and iteration of experimental training equipment, depreciation and amortization costs increased by 19.5% compared to the same period last year, as well as continuously optimizing the teacher cost structure, improving the remuneration and benefits of core teaching positions, and strengthening the construction of a high-quality teaching team.
In terms of gross profit, during the reporting period, the gross profit of the New Higher Education Group was 521 million yuan, an increase of 15.1% over 453 million yuan in the same period last year. The gross margin for the reporting period was 39.8%, which is roughly the same as 39.3% in the same period last year.
In terms of expenses, the sales and distribution expenses of the New Higher Education Group during the reporting period were 22.414 million yuan, an increase of 28% over 17.51 million yuan in the same period last year. Administrative expenses increased 18.7% year-on-year from 44.851 million yuan in the same period last year to 53.261,000 yuan. This was mainly due to an increase in operating expenses entrusted by the New Higher Education Group from external agencies to advance the application process for schools in Guizhou.
In the first half of the fiscal year, the net profit of the New Higher Education Group was 432 million yuan, an increase of 10.6% over the previous year.
After the release of the interim report, as of May 29, the stock price of the New Higher Education Group once fell by 3.33% to HK$2.32 per share.
