Goldman Sachs has released a research report projecting that mainland catering sales growth will accelerate to 4.2% year-on-year this year, up from last year's 3.2% growth rate. Although overall consumer spending has yet to show significant improvement, the bank observed that catering demand has stabilized over the past few months. Additionally, price increases have emerged in the industry, which Goldman Sachs attributes to rising operational and raw material costs, as well as an increase in the proportion of delivery orders, supported by stabilizing demand. For freshly-made beverage companies, the bank anticipates challenges in comparable store sales growth during the second and third quarters of this year due to a high base effect. However, higher-than-expected delivery subsidies year-to-date, along with product category expansion and richer consumption scenarios, are expected to support comparable store sales growth. That said, the rising share of delivery orders may negatively impact profitability and store operations, potentially prompting brands to offer support or subsidies. Regarding stocks, the bank maintains a positive outlook on leading players in the freshly-made beverage industry, including GUMING (01364) and MIXUE GROUP (02097). It raised the target price for GUMING to HK$34 and adjusted the target price for MIXUE GROUP to HK$493, assigning "Conviction Buy" and "Buy" ratings respectively, with a particularly favorable view on the former.
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