Shares of Southwest China's leading dairy company, New Hope Dairy Co., Ltd., opened lower on March 13, closing at 17.91 yuan per share with a slight decline of 0.78%, resulting in a total market capitalization of 15.415 billion yuan.
This followed a day of significant volatility for the stock. On March 12, the share price dropped sharply after market open, briefly hitting the daily downward limit during the session. It closed at 18.05 yuan per share that afternoon, down 9.21% for the day. Market observers widely attributed this stock price fluctuation to the company's sudden disclosure of a plan to list in Hong Kong.
Seven years after its initial public offering on the A-share market, the company is once again planning a listing in Hong Kong. On the evening of March 11, New Hope Dairy announced its intention to issue overseas-listed foreign shares (H-shares) and list on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited.
The company stated that this move aims to meet its business development needs, advance its internationalization strategy, establish an international capital operation platform, and further enhance its capital strength. The company also announced its plan to appoint KPMG Huazhen LLP as the audit firm for this offering.
This plan for a Hong Kong IPO is not a recent development. Public information shows that New Hope Dairy was established in 2006, initially as the dairy segment of Sichuan-based private enterprise New Hope Group. This segment was spun off from the group in 2011 and subsequently listed in 2019.
As early as late 2013, the management of the company's predecessor, New Hope Dairy Holdings Limited, had preliminarily formulated a strategic plan for a red-chip listing in Hong Kong. After approval by relevant parties, implementation began in the second half of 2014. By 2015, the company had completed the establishment of its overseas red-chip structure. However, due to subsequent changes in market conditions and strategic adjustments, New Hope Dairy Holdings did not submit a listing application to overseas regulators.
In early 2016, following a reassessment by shareholders and management, it was concluded that the company's primary consumer base and future development strategy remained focused on the domestic market, and the A-share market was more conducive to corporate valuation and long-term development. Consequently, New Hope Dairy Holdings decided to abandon the original overseas listing plan, dismantle the red-chip structure, and instead pursue an A-share listing.
By the end of 2016, New Hope Dairy Holdings had been converted into a joint stock limited company. In early 2017, New Hope Dairy signed a listing辅导 agreement with China International Capital Corporation Limited, formally initiating its A-share IPO process. The company successfully passed the listing review in September 2018 and officially debuted on the SME Board of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in January 2019.
Now, seven years after its A-share listing, the company is once again setting its sights on the Hong Kong capital market. A successful listing on the Hong Kong Exchange would make New Hope Dairy the first dairy company in China to achieve a dual capital platform structure with both 'A+H' shares. Other dairy companies are already listed in Hong Kong, such as China Mengniu Dairy Company Limited, China Feihe Limited, and Youran Pasture Group. Furthermore, on January 19, Junlebao Dairy also submitted a main board listing application to the Hong Kong Exchange, formally starting its Hong Kong IPO process.
New Hope Dairy is an enterprise focused on the research and development, production, and sales of dairy products and dairy-containing beverages, with a product portfolio including liquid milk, dairy beverages, and milk powder. Financial data shows that from 2022 to 2024, the company's operating revenues were 10.006 billion yuan, 10.987 billion yuan, and 10.665 billion yuan, respectively. Net profit attributable to shareholders for the same periods was 361 million yuan, 431 million yuan, and 538 million yuan. For the first three quarters of 2025, the company achieved revenue of 8.434 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.49%, and a net profit attributable to shareholders of 623 million yuan, surging 31.48% year-on-year.
In terms of ownership structure, New Hope Dairy has long been controlled by the family of Liu Yonghao, founder and chairman of New Hope Group. As of the end of the third quarter of 2025, the company's controlling shareholder was Universal Dairy Limited, registered in Hong Kong, which holds a 65.07% stake. UDL is, in effect, 100% controlled by Liu Chang, the daughter of Liu Yonghao. Additionally, New Hope Investment Group Co., Ltd. holds approximately 11.42% of shares. Through multi-layered ownership, this company is 100% controlled by Liu Yonghao. Therefore, Liu Chang and her father, Liu Yonghao, are the joint ultimate controllers of New Hope Dairy.
According to the "2026 Hurun Global Rich List" released on March 5, the Liu Yonghao family possesses a fortune of 77 billion yuan, ranking 299th globally. It is noteworthy that since its listing in 2019, the Liu family has not reduced its holdings in New Hope Dairy. In June 2025, UDL disclosed a plan to reduce its stake by 3%, but this plan was ultimately not executed.
Currently, besides New Hope Dairy, the father-daughter duo also controls three other listed companies: New Hope Liuhe Co., Ltd., Huarong Chemical Co., Ltd., and New Hope Service Holdings Limited. According to her public profile, Liu Chang was born in 1980, holds Singaporean citizenship, and has an EMBA degree. She currently serves as a director of New Hope Dairy, chairman of New Hope Liuhe, and also holds positions including director of New Hope Group and chairman of New Hope Investment.
Liu Chang received rigorous training from her father from a young age. She went to the United States for studies at the age of 16, returned to China after completing her education in 2001, and joined New Hope Group in 2002, starting from a grassroots position. Liu Yonghao revealed in an interview that Liu Chang initially worked at a New Hope factory under the name "Li Tianmei," and almost no one knew her true identity at the time. For the next decade, she gained experience discreetly within the group until she was formally introduced to the public in 2011. In May 2013, she succeeded her father as chairman of New Hope Liuhe. In May 2023, Liu Chang assumed the role of chairman of New Hope Investment, taking over the family's investment business from her father.
Coinciding with New Hope Dairy's announcement of its Hong Kong listing plans, New Hope Group appeared on the investor list of an AI unicorn, drawing significant attention. On March 11, Guanglun Intelligent (Beijing) Technology Co., Ltd. announced the completion of a Series A++ and A+++ funding round totaling 1 billion yuan. Guanglun Intelligent disclosed that investors in this round included New Hope Group, among other institutions. Following this funding, Guanglun Intelligent became the world's first unicorn enterprise in the field of embodied data.
Founded in January 2023, Guanglun Intelligent is dedicated to providing a physical AI simulation and data infrastructure platform. Its founder and CEO is Xie Chen, who previously held positions as head of autonomous driving simulation at companies including NVIDIA, Cruise, and NIO. According to the company's disclosures, its revenue achieved 10-fold growth in 2025, and revenue for the first quarter of 2026 is projected to exceed the total for the entire year of 2025. This AI investment indicates that New Hope Group is actively embracing artificial intelligence.
On the morning of March 11, the fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference concluded. Liu Yonghao, serving as a member of the National Committee, stated that the keyword that left the deepest impression on him during the meetings was "technology." Liu Yonghao expressed that in the context of increasingly fierce technological competition, China "must not fall behind" in related fields, and enterprises likewise need to keep pace. He emphasized that traditional enterprises, in particular, need to empower themselves with new technologies like artificial intelligence, stating, "This is the way forward for future development; we must take action."
This philosophy is already reflected in the specific operations of New Hope Dairy. For instance, leveraging its self-developed order forecasting system, the company has built a big data platform. Using AI algorithms to comprehensively analyze variables such as historical sales, weather, and promotions, it accurately predicts the hourly demand for "24-hour" fresh milk at each store. This ensures that stores only sell fresh milk produced on the same day.
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