As late April enters, the disclosure of the "report card" of listed car companies' 2024 annual reports is coming to an end, and the "performance map" of Chinese vehicle companies is becoming clearer. Among the auto companies that have disclosed their performance in 2024, more than 70% of them have positive net profits.

  Industry insiders said that in 2024, the sales of auto companies showed strong growth quarter by quarter, and the gross profit margin and profit efficiency of major auto companies continued to improve. Although the intensified industry competition has led to general pressure on the average price of auto companies, new car companies such as Xiaopeng Motors and Leapmotor Motors benefit from scale and their profitability has also improved significantly.

  More than 70% of car companies make profits BYD ranks first

  According to incomplete statistics from Wind data, as of April 16, among the 21 vehicle companies that have disclosed their 2024 performance, a total of 15 companies had positive net profits, accounting for more than 70%. Among them, the "three top three independent companies" BYD, Geely Automobile and Great Wall Motors ranked among the top in net profits, with net profits attributable to shareholders exceeding 10 billion yuan. Net profits of GAC Group, CIMC Vehicles, Changan Automobile and other companies all declined last year.

  Specifically, BYD's revenue in 2024 was as high as 777.102 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 29.02%; net profit attributable to shareholders was 40.254 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 34%. The company's total vehicle products have accumulated sales of 4.2721 million vehicles throughout the year. According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, in 2024, BYD and its subsidiaries' new energy vehicle sales increased by more than 40% year-on-year on the basis of a high base, and its market share further increased to 33.2%, an increase of 1.3 percentage points year-on-year, ranking first in the Chinese auto market, first in the Chinese auto market brand sales and the global new energy vehicle market sales champion.

  Geely Auto's annual revenue in 2024 was 240.194 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 34%, and its net profit attributable to shareholders was 16.632 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 213%. In 2024, Geely Auto's cumulative sales volume was 2.177 million units, a record high, a year-on-year increase of 32%. Among them, the cumulative sales of new energy exceeded 888,000 vehicles, a record high, with a year-on-year increase of about 92%.

  Great Wall Motor achieved sales of 1.2345 million vehicles in 2024, an increase of 0.37% year-on-year, and total operating revenue of 202.195 billion yuan, an increase of 16.73% year-on-year, and net profit of 12.692 billion yuan, an increase of 80.76% year-on-year. In 2024, the company sold 454,100 vehicles overseas, an increase of 44.61% year-on-year, continuing to hit a record high, and the cumulative overseas sales have exceeded 1.8 million vehicles.

  Cui Dongshu, Secretary-General of the China Passenger Car Association, recently issued a statement saying that with the promotion of the national new dual policies, the sales of automakers in 2024 showed a quarter-by-quarter growth, and the gross profit margins and profit benefits of major automakers have also continued to improve. However, due to the differences in R&D expenses of various companies, coupled with factors such as taxation, the profits of different car companies are quite different.

  The performance of new forces car companies is differentiated and "cost reduction" becomes the key

  The performance of the leading new car companies that are more concerned by the market has a large differentiation in 2024. Ideal Auto and Cialis have achieved profitability, while NIO and Xiaopeng Automobile have not yet gotten rid of their losses. Analyzing the financial reports of many new forces of car companies shows that excessive costs and expenses have become the main factor dragging down the company's performance, and "cost reduction" is still a key challenge facing car companies at present.

  In 2024, Ideal Auto achieved total operating revenue of 144.46 billion yuan, an increase of 16.6% year-on-year, and net profit of 8.045 billion yuan, a decrease of 31.9% year-on-year. Affected by factors such as product portfolio, changes in pricing strategies, and increased R&D, management and sales expenses, Ideal Auto's net sales profit margin fell sharply to 5.57% in 2024.

  According to the annual report, the total sales cost of Ideal Auto in 2024 was 114.804 billion yuan, an increase of 19.1% year-on-year, and the growth rate was faster than the growth rate of operating income. Not only that, the company's sales, general and administrative expenses totaled 12.229 billion yuan last year, an increase of 25.2% year-on-year. The rapid growth of operating costs and the sharp increase in management and sales expenses have dragged down Ideal Auto's net profit.

  Cialis turned losses into profits for the first time since 2020. According to the annual report, in 2024, Cialis achieved operating income of 145.176 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 305.04%, mainly due to the double sales of the company's new energy vehicle. The company achieved a net profit attributable to shareholders of RMB 5.946 billion, and a net loss of RMB 2.45 billion last year. It is mainly due to the adjustment of the company's sales product structure and the enhancement of product profitability.

  Leapmotor's performance is also remarkable. The performance announcement shows that Leapmotor's annual revenue in 2024 reached 32.16 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 92.0%; the net loss was 2.82 billion yuan, a year-on-year narrowing of 33.18%. The company's annual delivery volume was 293,700 vehicles, an increase of 103.8% year-on-year, making it the fastest growing new car-making brand. The company's gross profit margin in 2024 was 8.4%, an increase of 7.9 percentage points from 0.5% in 2023.

  Xiaopeng Motors' net profit loss in 2024 is also narrowing. According to the annual report, Xiaopeng Motors' revenue in 2024 reached 40.87 billion yuan, an increase of 33.2% year-on-year; the annual gross profit margin was 14.3%, an increase of 12.8 percentage points year-on-year; the net loss narrowed significantly to 5.79 billion yuan, and the company's net loss in 2023 was 10.38 billion yuan.

  "With sales hitting a new high and continuous breakthrough in technology cost reduction, our automobile gross profit margin has further increased to 10%, achieving continuous improvement for six consecutive quarters. The company's gross profit margin is stable at the medium double-digit level." Gu Hongdi, vice chairman and co-president of Xiaopeng Motors, said in his financial report that Xiaopeng Motors will have more strong new products launched in 2025, and while adhering to technological research and development, it will continue to improve profitability and free cash flow.

  NIO's net profit performance was not ideal, and the company's losses further expanded in 2024. In 2024, NIO achieved operating income of 65.73 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 18.2%; net loss reached 22.4 billion yuan, a year-on-year loss of 8.1%. In terms of sales, in 2024, NIO delivered a total of 222,000 new energy vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 38.7%. In terms of operating costs, NIO's annual sales, general and administrative expenses increased by 22.2% year-on-year to 15.74 billion yuan.

  Industry competition is "intensifying" and automakers increase research and development

  Against the backdrop of the accelerated transformation of the automobile industry toward intelligence and electrification, R&D investment has become the core element of competition among car companies. It can be seen from the annual report that most auto companies have maintained high R&D investment, especially increasing investment in the field of intelligence to cope with industry transformation and fierce market competition.

  According to the financial report, BYD's R&D investment in 2024 was approximately 54.2 billion yuan, an increase of 35.68% year-on-year, and the cumulative R&D investment exceeded 180 billion yuan. BYD said it will continue to increase R&D investment and lead the second half of new energy vehicles with the integration of intelligence and electricity.

  Changan Automobile's annual report said that from the perspective of competitive landscape, the market concentration of automobile companies continues to increase, coupled with the high investment in intelligence and R&D, has driven the increase in industry barriers. Independent brands have maintained their dominance in the new energy market with their technological leadership and supply chain cost control capabilities; the market share of joint venture brands continues to be under pressure, and their performance in the new energy market is relatively weak, and competitive pressure is expected to further intensify in the future. In 2024, Changan Automobile invested 15.158 billion yuan in full-caliber R&D (including Avita 2.67 billion yuan), and the cumulative investment in the past decade exceeded 110 billion yuan.

  "The company continues to firmly follow the technical route of 'software-defined automobiles', explore cross-border business cooperation between vehicle companies and ICT companies, and is committed to developing high-end brands. The company will further increase and strengthen R&D investment and intensity." Salis said. According to the annual report, in 2024, Celis' cumulative R&D investment reached 7.053 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 58.91%; the total number of R&D personnel at the end of the year was 6,201, an increase of 1,246 compared with the same period last year, a year-on-year increase of 25.15%. The proportion of R&D personnel in the company's total number has further increased compared with the previous year, and the R&D team is showing a trend of younger and more educated.

  Ideal Auto's R&D expenses in 2024 increased from 10.6 billion yuan in 2023 to 11.1 billion yuan, mainly due to the company's expansion of its product portfolio and technology expenses and increased employee salaries.

  Major automakers continue to increase investment in R&D not only demonstrates the company's emphasis on technological innovation, but also reflects the "white-hot" of industry competition. In addition, judging from the sales targets of major automakers in 2025, institutions predict that competition among automakers will intensify in 2025. Industry insiders said that the auto market may present a pattern of "the strong will always be strong" in the future, and companies with leading technology and effective cost control will have an advantage. As consumers' demand for intelligence and electrification becomes increasingly mature, car companies are also required to maintain innovation while paying more attention to cost-effectiveness and user experience. (Reporter Zhang Juan)

[Editor in charge: Zhou Jingjie]