In a rare move, more than three dozen BYD executives increased their stakes in the world’s largest electric-vehicle (EV) maker, which is likely to boost investor confidence after its shares plunged more than 20 per cent from an all-time high in May.
Thirty-seven executives, including five vice-presidents, spent a combined 52.3 million yuan (US$7.3 million) to buy 488,200 Shenzhen-listed shares to “display their continued optimism about the investment value of the company”, BYD said in filings to the Hong Kong and Shenzhen stock exchanges on Wednesday evening. The shares accounted for 0.027 per cent of the company, the statement added.
The five vice-presidents – Luo Hongbin, Zhou Yalin, Yang Dongsheng, Luo Zhongliang and Li Wei – bought 221,800 shares between September 1 and 9 for a total of 23.6 million yuan. Zhou is also the chief financial officer of the dual-listed carmaker. The other 32 executives, who were not identified, spent 28.7 million yuan to buy 266,400 shares in the same period, the statement said.
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BYD’s A shares rose 0.2 per cent to 105.43 yuan on Thursday, paring the losses to 23.4 per cent since hitting a peak of 137.67 yuan on May 23. Its H shares fell 0.3 per cent to HK$105.30, a decline of 31.4 per cent from the all-time high of HK$153.6 on May 23.
BYD last week lowered its sales target for this year to 4.6 million units, down 16 per cent from a previous forecast of 5.5 million. Photo: AFP alt=BYD last week lowered its sales target for this year to 4.6 million units, down 16 per cent from a previous forecast of 5.5 million. Photo: AFP>
“Worries about the sales drop and profitability knocked BYD shares down recently, but the company’s senior executives appear to be bullish about its outlook,” said Ding Haifeng, a consultant at financial advisory firm Integrity in Shanghai. “The market is expected to react in a lukewarm manner until its top bosses take similar action.”
Last week, BYD lowered its sales target for this year to 4.6 million units, down 16 per cent from a previous forecast of 5.5 million, according to Reuters, which cited unidentified sources. The revised target represents a 7 per cent year-on-year increase for the carmaker.
Mainland China’s EV market, the world’s largest, has been facing overcapacity woes and brutal price competition over the past two years, with only a small portion of players including BYD able to post a profit.
BYD, which counts Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway as a minority shareholder, reported a 30 per cent drop in second-quarter profit as steep discounts on the mainland squeezed its profit margin.
The company, controlled by billionaire Wang Chuanfu, made a profit of 6.4 billion yuan in the three months to June, a decline of 30 per cent from a year earlier, according to its interim earning report published last month. Revenue grew 14 per cent to 201 billion yuan.
Overseas sales surged in the second quarter as BYD’s inexpensive models attracted foreign consumers opting for environmentally friendly cars.
BYD delivered 258,182 cars to customers abroad in the second quarter, up 145 per cent from a year earlier and 25 per cent from the preceding three months.
Overseas sales accounted for 23 per cent of its total deliveries, compared with less than 10 per cent in 2024.
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