The Zhitong Finance App learned that Jefferies released a research report stating that it maintained the Budweiser Asia Pacific (01876) “Buy” rating and lowered earnings estimates by 11%, 7%, and 6% respectively from 2024 to 2026 to reflect the lowered sales forecast and profit expansion estimates. It is also expected that as the base effect declines, the Group's business performance will improve in the second half of the year, and the target price will be lowered from HK$21.2 to HK$18.7.

The report quoted Budweiser Asia Pacific management as saying that due to the reopening of the mainland in the first half of last year, the industry is expected to face another high base in the Chinese market next quarter; in addition, the bad weather also affected the South China region. Meanwhile, management remains confident about the profit margin prospects of the Korean market. Jefferies expects Budweiser Asia Pacific to record a normalized EBITDA of about US$584 million in the second quarter, which represents a 1% natural increase, while sales are expected to drop 2.8%.