Investors following the market know that authoritative, professional, timely and comprehensive analyst research helps uncover potential thematic opportunities. Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) delivered a third-quarter 2026 report marked by declines in both revenue and profit: revenue for the first three quarters totaled RMB 47.902 billion, down 10.74% year on year; net profit attributable to shareholders was RMB 1.42 billion, down 50.06%; and non-GAAP net profit fell to RMB 998 million, a drop of 63.07%. Behind the fact that the profit decline far exceeded the revenue decline, currency fluctuations and weakening end demand together squeezed profit margins. At the same time, to support inventory stocking for a major customer鈥檚 new products, the company鈥檚 inventories rose sharply, short-term and long-term borrowings increased in tandem, and operating cash flow weakened.
Market observers noted that Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) is accelerating its push into areas such as AI servers and optical communications, while R&D and administrative expenses are further squeezing profits in the near term. Many of these businesses are still in verification or ramp-up stages and have yet to be reflected in the financial statements. With profit under pressure intertwined with the transition between old and new growth drivers, whether the company can achieve quarter-by-quarter earnings recovery remains to be verified.
Profit decline outpaces revenue decline, with FX losses of RMB 654 million
The fact that Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) saw its net profit decline far exceed its revenue decline in the first three quarters became the most closely watched issue in this earnings report. According to the investor relations activity record disclosed by the company, there are two main core factors weighing on profits. The first is currency fluctuation: the company鈥檚 overseas business is mainly settled in U.S. dollars, and during the reporting period the renminbi appreciated rapidly and one-directionally against the dollar. In the first three quarters, foreign exchange losses within financial expenses reached RMB 654 million, compared with foreign exchange gains of RMB 115 million in the same period last year, resulting in a year-on-year decrease of RMB 769 million in foreign exchange gains and losses. Although the company controls exchange-rate risk through measures such as foreign exchange hedging and foreign exchange exposure management, the FX losses still had a significant impact on current-period profit. The second factor is that rising memory chip prices pressured demand for smartphones and computers, leading to declines in revenue from related structural parts, functional modules and assembly businesses, which reduced gross profit by about RMB 700 million.
Market observers noted that from the first-half performance, the company was already under operating pressure: revenue was RMB 28.866 billion, down 12.42% year on year; net profit attributable to shareholders was RMB 577 million, down 49.52% year on year. In the third quarter, the company鈥檚 revenue was RMB 19.035 billion and net profit attributable to shareholders was RMB 843 million, up 29.26% and 16.04% quarter on quarter, respectively, showing signs of operational recovery. But on a year-on-year basis, third-quarter revenue and net profit attributable to shareholders still fell 8.05% and 50.42%, respectively. Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) explained that the year-earlier period benefited from continued strong sales of a customer鈥檚 new products, creating the highest quarterly revenue and profit base in history; this autumn the customer adjusted its product matrix and launch pace, causing part of production and revenue recognition to shift later. At the same time, economies of scale in last year鈥檚 third quarter lifted the gross margin level, while this year, due to the customer鈥檚 adjusted launch pace, the scale-effect advantage weakened, and combined with upstream supply chain pressure and rising labor costs, gross margin was affected to a certain extent. The company believes the earnings pressure is temporary and that its core competitiveness and long-term growth logic have not changed. However, whether this judgment holds will depend on the pace of inventory reduction on the asset side and the ramp-up of new businesses.
Inventories surge and borrowings rise, while cash flow declines
Alongside profit pressure came simultaneous increases in inventories and borrowings. As of the end of the third quarter of 2026, Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) had an inventory balance of RMB 9.36 billion, up 35.02% from RMB 6.932 billion at the beginning of the period. The company said this was mainly due to active stocking to support a major customer鈥檚 new product launch and subsequent delivery needs. The customer鈥檚 new model officially went on sale in October, and to safeguard customer demand, the company accordingly increased production and stocking of related products. The company mentioned that its model mainly involves scheduling production based on customized appearance parts and structural component orders from customers. It has long-term cooperation and a good relationship with major customers, so the risk of inventory becoming obsolete is very small. The above inventories mainly correspond to customer new products and subsequent production and delivery needs. As related structural components are delivered one after another, they will gradually convert into operating revenue once revenue recognition conditions are met.
However, the contrast between inventory growth and the decline in first-three-quarter revenue still warrants attention to two risks. First, if end sales fall short of expectations, a prolonged inventory cycle will tie up working capital and bring impairment pressure. Second, to stock up, the company simultaneously raised short-term and long-term borrowings: short-term borrowings increased from RMB 644 million to RMB 1.824 billion, up 183.35%; long-term borrowings increased from RMB 4.367 billion to RMB 8.317 billion, up 90.48%. Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) said the increase in short-term borrowings was mainly due to higher working capital needs for fourth-quarter inventory stocking, while the increase in long-term borrowings was because multiple projects are in early preparatory stages and need start-up funds reserved in advance. Although bank loan interest rates are currently at relatively low levels and interest expenses have not increased substantially, the company鈥檚 short-term borrowings have risen markedly and long-term borrowings have nearly doubled. This means that, on the one hand, repayment schedules are more concentrated and pressure on capital turnover increases; on the other hand, once the interest-rate environment turns or financing costs rise, the company will have to pay more interest, further squeezing profit margins.
Market observers noted that another side of rising borrowings is the decline in book cash and weakening operating cash flow. As of the end of the third quarter, Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) had a monetary funds balance of RMB 8.6 billion, down RMB 1.26 billion from the beginning of the year, mainly affected by dividends and early-stage project investment; net cash flow from operating activities was RMB 4.713 billion, down 19.35% year on year. The company stressed that its main business has strong cash-generating ability, its debt-to-asset ratio is only just over 40%, and daily operating working capital is mainly covered by its own operating cash flow. But whether subsequent inventories can be smoothly converted into revenue is the key to testing the 鈥渜uality鈥?of this earnings report.
Increasing AI bets, with near-term investment squeezing room
Under pressure, Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) is still investing continuously for the future, and this investment in turn squeezes profit in the short term. The financial report shows that in the first three quarters of this year, the company鈥檚 R&D expenses were RMB 2.435 billion, and administrative expenses were RMB 2.279 billion, together forming the main increase in period expenses. Among them, third-quarter R&D expenses were RMB 945 million, up 18.7% year on year; administrative expenses increased 10.03% year on year. Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) explained that R&D investment was mainly used to support new product R&D and sample verification for customers across multiple fields. The company specifically said that for this year鈥檚 launched foldable phones, smart home products, new notebooks, new-material smart watches and next year鈥檚 new product structural designs, it has many projects requiring R&D investment. At the same time, the company continues to increase R&D investment around on-device AI and AI computing power, with key布局 in areas such as AI glasses, embodied intelligent robots, TGV glass substrates, hollow-core optical fibers and optical communication modules, and AI server structural parts and liquid cooling. The increase in administrative expenses was due to the company鈥檚 layout in the AI field, recruiting management, business and technical personnel, with corresponding increases in salary expenses.
Market observers noted that in the AI server field, Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ) has established related businesses as one of its core strategic tracks. In June 2026, the company increased capital in PMG鈥檚 holding subsidiary Yuanshi Technology (Zhejiang) Co., Ltd., holding 14.28% equity; in October it signed another share purchase agreement to acquire 59.7805% equity in PMG and achieve control of Yuanshi Technology. According to the company, AI server-related production capacity at the Dongguan Songshan Lake park has completed expansion, and liquid cooling modules, high-end precision cabinets and high-speed optical interconnect supporting components have successively passed verification by leading North American computing power manufacturers and obtained scale orders, now entering the mass production ramp-up stage. In optical communications, through the acquisition of Tongsheng Optoelectronics, the company is laying out solid-core optical fibers, hollow-core optical fibers, MPO optical fiber arrays and connectors, and continuously advancing industrialization. At the same time, the company plans to further strengthen precision metal processing capability and capacity reserves by acquiring Ju Teng International, to meet demand for AI server metal structural parts.
In the view of Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ), with next year鈥檚 burst of customer innovation cycles and the company鈥檚 continued promotion of the transition between old and new growth drivers, the original businesses are expected to gradually resume growth. New businesses that capture market imagination, such as innovative AI on-device hardware for large-model customers and AI computing power, will also accelerate the release of growth momentum. With new projects gradually ramping up, capacity utilization improving and operating efficiency continuing to improve, the company is confident of achieving quarter-by-quarter improvement in operating performance and entering a new round of growth. Objectively speaking, many of the above businesses are still in sample verification, mass production ramp-up or pending transaction stages, and their contribution to current-period revenue has not yet been reflected in the financial statements. Whether the old and new growth drivers can smoothly connect is a variable affecting the quality of Lens Technology Co.,Ltd. (300433.SZ)鈥檚 performance in the next stage.
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