Income and net profit hit a new high again, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. (688082.SH) accelerates the growth potential of diversified products.

The first annual financial report of the Science and Technology Innovation Board and the semiconductor equipment industry in 2024 has officially been released. On the evening of February 26, the semiconductor equipment platform enterprise Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. (688082.SH) released its annual report for 2024. According to the report, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. achieved a revenue of approximately 5.618 billion yuan in 2024, an increase of 44.48% year-on-year. The net profit attributable to shareholders for the period was approximately 1.153 billion yuan, an increase of 26.65% year-on-year. Both revenue and net profit have reached historic highs, demonstrating the strong development momentum of the company. It is worth noting that the net profit attributable to shareholders of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. is calculated after accounting for share-based payment expenses. Excluding the impact of share-based payment expenses, the net profit attributable to shareholders of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. in 2024 would be approximately 1.444 billion yuan, an increase of 35.48% year-on-year. This more clearly shows the actual profit level of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. after excluding equity incentive factors, reflecting the strong growth momentum of the company's business operations. With the disclosure of this annual report, several securities firms have issued research reports expressing optimism about the future development of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. Among them, Nomura Orient International stated that strong local demand supports Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s high growth in cleaning equipment, maintaining a "buy" rating for Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. with a target price raised to 132 yuan. Meanwhile, Yuanta Securities has given Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. a "buy" rating with a target price of 140 yuan. However, from a longer-term perspective, the value of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. goes far beyond this. After continuously advancing the three core strategies of "technological differentiation, product platformization, and customer globalization," Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. has successfully built solid competitive barriers. This sets a solid foundation for the company to unleash its enormous growth potential in the coming years amid a high industry boom, not only consolidating Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s leading position in the semiconductor equipment field but also driving the continuous growth of the company's value in the capital market. Q4 performance accelerates growth, annual patent applications increase by nearly 90% After experiencing slowing industry development in 2022 and 2023, benefiting from the breakthrough of generative AI technology, the recovery of consumer electronics markets such as smartphones and AI PCs, and the continuous growth in downstream markets such as automotive electronics and the Internet of Things, the global semiconductor equipment industry finally began to emerge from the downturn and enter a warming trend in 2024. According to data from SEMI (the International Semiconductor Industry Association), the global semiconductor equipment market is expected to reach 109 billion U.S. dollars in 2024, an increase of 3.4% year-on-year, compared to a growth rate of -1.3% in 2023. The industry's recovery trend is now very apparent. Against this backdrop, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s robust growth momentum has begun to accelerate, as detailed in its 2024 financial report. In terms of annual financial data, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. achieved record-high revenue and net profit in 2024, and its Q4 showed a noticeable trend of accelerated growth compared to Q3. In Q4, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. had a revenue of 1.641 billion yuan, an increase of 44.14% year-on-year. This represents an increase of over 6 percentage points from the 37.96% growth in Q3 and a sequential growth of 4.34% compared to Q3. At the same time, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s non-GAAP net profit in Q4 was 368 million yuan, an increase of 61.29% year-on-year. This represents an increase of nearly 30 percentage points from the 31.41% growth in Q3, and a sequential growth of 20.15% compared to Q3. Behind the doubled growth in net cash flow is mainly due to the increase in sales receipts and the increase in advance receipts due to growth in sales orders. The growth in advance receipts indirectly indicates strong market demand for Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. products, which is also evidenced by the company's contractual liabilities. As a key indicator that provides forward-looking guidance on future revenue changes, contractual liabilities reflect the size of the amount of orders not yet executed by the enterprise in the current period. As of December 31, 2024, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s contractual liabilities amount to 1.106 billion yuan, an increase of 26.21% year-on-year. Sufficient orders in hand, along with the development of new orders, are expected to continue to drive rapid growth for the company. In addition, the continued high investment in research and development to build competitive barriers is also a highlight of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s 2024 financial report. During the reporting period, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. invested 838 million yuan in research and development, an increase of 27.36%, maintainingAt a higher level of investment.The significant increase in the number of patents not only reflects the obvious effectiveness of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s high research and development investment, but also an important indicator of its continuously improving competitiveness. By the end of 2024, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. and its subsidiaries had applied for a total of 311 patents, an increase of 89.63% from the previous year. By the end of 2024, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. had accumulated 1,526 patent applications, an increase of 37.11% from the previous year. Clearly, whether it is performance, cash flow, R&D investment, or the number of patent applications, they all convey the "value" of Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s 2024 financial report to the market. This is a high-quality report that balances current high growth performance with the accumulation of future growth potential. When looking at the future development trends of the industry and Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s own growth path, the company's high growth potential is expected to continue to accelerate. Diversified products accelerating volume, helping performance growth to be more resilient From an industry perspective, the semiconductor equipment market entered a period of high prosperity in 2024. According to a report released by SEMI, global semiconductor equipment capital spending is expected to increase by 24% to $123 billion in 2025. It is also estimated that in the three years from 2025 to 2027, global semiconductor manufacturers will spend a staggering $400 billion on equipment. In this global wave of expanding semiconductor equipment demand, China is set to lead the way. It is anticipated that in the next three years, Chinese semiconductor manufacturers will spend over $100 billion on semiconductor equipment, making China the world's largest semiconductor equipment market. Undoubtedly, the Chinese semiconductor equipment industry has entered a period of strategic development opportunity in a high-prosperity industry. Chinese semiconductor equipment companies are expected to accelerate their growth in this environment. Among the many semiconductor equipment companies already listed, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. is poised to be one of the companies with the most growth potential in the next two to three years. This is because Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. has built solid competitive barriers through the continued advancement of its three major strategies, propelling the company into an accelerated release period for diversified products. Having started with cleaning equipment, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. has extended its product range to include electroplating equipment, advanced packaging wet processing equipment, vertical furnace tube equipment, coating and developing equipment, PECVD equipment, and panel leveling packaging equipment, covering a potential market space of about $20 billion. In 2024, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. continued to focus on the cleaning equipment market, while optimizing the performance of cleaning equipment, and accelerating the introduction of new equipment. During the reporting period, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s Ultra C Tahoe cleaning equipment achieved an important performance breakthrough. In the process of low-temperature sulfuric acid (SPM) cleaning, this equipment can achieve the same effect as independent single-wafer cleaning equipment, and can reduce chemical consumption by up to 75%. The significant performance breakthrough of this equipment is expected to further solidify Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s leading position in the cleaning equipment market. At the same time, in 2024, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. successively launched frame wafer cleaning equipment for advanced packaging, Ultra C vac-p negative pressure cleaning equipment for fan-out panel level packaging applications, and Ultra C bev-p panel edge etching equipment for fan-out panel level packaging (FOPLP) applications. In addition, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. has launched a plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition furnace which has entered two integrated circuit wafer manufacturing plants in China and is undergoing updates and optimizations for mass production. Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. has stated that in the next two to three years, Tahoe equipment (single-slot combined equipment), high-temperature single-piece SPM equipment, edge etching equipment, and panel level packaging equipment are expected to become new growth points. Electroplating, furnace tube, and other equipment will join the main revenue earners, while PECVD and Track equipment will also begin to ramp up production. It is worth noting that the Shengmei Semiconductor Equipment Research and Manufacturing Center in Lingang was officially completed and partially put into operation in October 2024. The A plant can achieve an annual output value of over $5 billion, and the B plant is expected to start production this year. The two plants can achieve a capacity of over $10 billion, which will break through the constraints on Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s high-speed development capacity and support the increased capacity demand for the company's diversified products. In summary, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s layout has become clear. As the industry enters a period of high prosperity strategic development, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. has entered a period of fruitful returns for diversified products. The acceleration of diversified product volume will also drive the continuous acceleration of the company's platform construction, not only making Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s performance more resilient, but also increasing the proportion of non-cleaning equipment revenue to make the company's product structure more balanced, enhancing customer stickiness and strengthening the company's competitiveness, laying a solid foundation for the company's long-term development.From a valuation perspective, as of March 5, 2025, Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc. has a PE ratio of 40.52 times. Based on the competitive barriers formed by its platform-based strategic layout and future growth potential, it is expected that Acm Research (Shanghai), Inc.'s valuation will have higher growth potential.This means that in the next two to three years, Acm Research(Shanghai),Inc. stock price is expected to see continued high growth in performance, and the sustainable dividend policy will further enhance the investment value of Acm Research(Shanghai),Inc. In the 2024 financial report, Acm Research(Shanghai),Inc. has proposed to distribute a dividend of 6.57 (including tax) for every 10 shares, totaling approximately 288 million yuan (including tax) in cash dividends. This cash dividend amount accounts for 25% of the net profit attributable to the parent company shareholders for the current period. The continuous dividend policy reflects Acm Research(Shanghai),Inc.'s good profitability, cash level, and emphasis on shareholder returns. Dividends will also significantly increase the demand for long-term stable funds to allocate Acm Research(Shanghai),Inc., and now may be a good time to long-term layout Acm Research(Shanghai),Inc.