The Zhitong Finance App learned that Yamato released a research report stating that it maintained the “holding” rating of Rikwen Paper (02314) and lowered its profit forecast for this year and next two years by 8% to 9%, reflecting the challenging consumer climate in China, which lowered the average product price forecast. The target price was lowered from HK$2.8 to HK$2.6.

According to the report, the company's profit fell 12.4% year on year to 1.154 billion yuan, better than market expectations of 720 million yuan. The better performance was mainly due to an improvement in net profit per ton from 120 yuan in the first half of last year to 205 yuan in the second half of the year. The bank believes that the Group's resilient profit performance is driven by product diversification, including expansion of the tissue business, and vertical integration.