Xtep shares rally 4pc as Q3 sales improve

Shares of Xtep International (1368) rose 4.55 percent after the Chinese sportswear maker said its retail sales in the mainland grew by 20 percent to 25 percent in the third quarter.

Xtep also said it offered a discount ranging from 25 percent to 30 percent from July to September, the same level as the previous quarter.

But the discount is bigger than the offer of 20 percent to 25 percent from 2021's third quarter.

However, the third-quarter sales growth is slower than that of the April-June period when it claimed an increase of at least 35 percent year-on-year, in addition to a jump of no less than 35 percent in the unaudited net quarterly profit.

Further, the inventory turnover for the third quarter lasted 4.5 to five months, longer than around 4.5 months for the first half of this year, signalling heavier inventory.

Shares of Xtep closed at HK$8.05 yesterday, rallying from the decline of 7.07 percent in the morning.

Meanwhile, Xtep's local competitor Anta Sports Products (2020) fell 3.61 percent to HK$78.8 after it is rumored to miss its goal due to Covid measures in mainland still in place.

Another consumer-renowned brand Ajisen (China) (0538) said its same-store sales in mainland slumped 11.1 percent in the third quarter with the sales of its fast-casual restaurant business in the mainland down 14.7 percent for the period.

However, the Japan-based fast food restaurants selling ramen posed a rebound in performance from the second quarter when the same-store sales fell 28.7 percent from one year ago while the FCR sales slumped 47 percent over the same period.

Shares of Ajisen (China) reported a 3 percent rise to HK$0.69 percent yesterday.