Great Wall Motor Shares Jump on Surging Profit, Revenue

By Jiahui Huang

Great Wall Motor shares rose sharply as investors cheered the company's first-quarter results, which beat some analysts' expectations.

The company's Hong Kong-listed shares were up 9.8% in midday trading Thursday, on track for their biggest one-day gain in more than a year. Its China-listed shares were 8.0% higher on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The Hebei, China-based company late Wednesday reported first-quarter net profit of 3.23 billion yuan ($445.8 million), up sharply from CNY174.2 million a year earlier. It said sales growth and an improved sales structure led to a "significant improvement of performance."

Revenue rose to a record CNY42.86 billion, driven by higher average selling prices of its vehicles and strong sales in overseas markets.

"Well above market expectations," Deutsche Bank analyst Bin Wang said in a report after the company's results. The analyst said company's gross margin improvement was supported by a 79% increase in export volumes, with Russia the largest importer of GWM vehicles.

Deutsche Bank said it expects the company's Russian sales volumes to rise further this year, as vehicle supply in the country dwindled after global brands exited Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.

The bank has a buy rating on Great Wall Motor and raised its target price on H shares to HK$14.00 from HK$13.00.

Write to Jiahui Huang at jiahui.huang@wsj.com