On the evening of October 15, Zoneco Group Co., Ltd. (獐子岛) disclosed its earnings forecast for the first three quarters of 2025, expecting a net loss attributable to shareholders of 29 to 35 million yuan, representing a year-over-year decline of 17.16% to 41.40% compared to the net loss of 24.75 million yuan in the same period last year; after deducting non-recurring gains and losses, the loss is forecasted to be between 22 and 28 million yuan.
The contrasting performance data is primarily attributed to severe impacts from non-recurring factors. The announcement indicated that the company's subsidiary, Qingdao Frontier Marine Seed Industry Co., Ltd., is required to repay taxes amounting to 10.6351 million yuan plus a late fee of 872.31 thousand yuan due to non-compliance with the "half tax reduction on marine aquaculture" policy for its seedling cooperation business from 2019 to 2021; additionally, the company needs to repay 218.48 thousand yuan in taxes and late fees for 2022, totaling 21.543 million yuan, which has been fully charged to the current period, directly reducing net profit attributable to the parent company by 12.4949 million yuan.
At the same time, the company prudently set aside asset impairment provisions of 2.9037 million yuan and wrote off biological assets in poor growth condition and damaged fixed assets totaling 8.0005 million yuan, resulting in a combined impact of 10.7364 million yuan on net profit.
Looking at the quarterly rhythm, the first half of the year was a profitable window. Benefiting from tight supply and rising prices of scallops, the company actively harvested and sold bottom-sown and floating raft scallops, achieving a net profit attributable to the parent company of 10.1491 million yuan in the interim report, marking a year-on-year increase of 146.39%. However, in the third quarter, both the price and volume of fresh aquatic products fell sharply, leading to a decline in scallop gross profit, exacerbated by sluggish sales of sea cucumber processed products influenced by changes in consumer structure, which rapidly eroded the main business's profitability.
Currently, the scallop farming industry is highly reliant on market cycles, with the company's price bonuses in the first half failing to translate into long-term advantages, while the sea cucumber business is mired in structural difficulties, with the underperformance in sales of processed products reflecting insufficient capacity to meet consumer demand.
Moreover, the financial pressure is becoming more severe: by the end of June, the asset-liability ratio reached a staggering 95.16%, with financial expenses amounting to 20.3057 million yuan during the same period, and continuing liquidity issues persistently constrain operational improvement.
It is noteworthy that the company's performance has exhibited significant volatility in recent years. In 2024, it reported a net loss of 21.9126 million yuan, a year-on-year decline of 354.69%, while in the first quarter of 2025, it still recorded losses after deducting non-recurring gains. Whether the company can reverse this downward trend remains to be seen, depending on the recovery of consumer spending and effective cost control in the fourth quarter.
(Note: This article has been completed with the assistance of AI tools and does not constitute investment advice.)
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