- Robot maker's shares have swung sharply since its August listing
- Firm widely viewed as bellwether for China's robot industry
- Results come amid broader China tech rout, tighter scrutiny of humanoid-robot IPOs
BEIJING, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Unitree said on Wednesday third-quarter revenue rose 70% from a year earlier but net profit fell in its first earnings result since listing, as China's best-known humanoid maker faces its first market test amid a tech sector rout.
It generated 665 million yuan ($100 million) in revenue while net profit attributable to shareholders fell 17.4% to 112.7 million yuan, below analysts' 224 million yuan forecast, as the company more than doubled research and development expenses.
For the first nine months of the year, revenue climbed 55.7% to 1.82 billion yuan and net profit rose 270.5% to 386.7 million yuan, Unitree said in a Shanghai Stock Exchange filing.
The company attributed the January-September profit surge to higher gross profit and to a large one-time share-based payment expense booked in the prior-year period.
It is one of the few profitable domestic robot firms as the sector searches for viable commercial applications of the technology.
Research and development spending jumped 249.6% in the third quarter to 127.0 million yuan, or 19.1% of revenue, as the company invested more in embodied-intelligence large models, computing capacity and its R&D team.
Investors are closely watching the company's performance as a bellwether for future listings of Chinese humanoid robot makers, whose technology has not yet proved commercial viability.
Reuters reported last month that Chinese regulators are slowing down IPOs for humanoid robot firms amid tech stock volatility, as they scrutinise whether soaring valuations and revenue tied to state-backed projects reflect real commercial demand.
TECH MARKET ROUT
Unitree's shares have surged over 65% in the past two weeks after slumping almost 55% from their August debut. The company issued an abnormal trading announcement on October 21, warning investors of significant valuation risks.
But US investment bank JPMorgan hiked its stock rating on Monday and the company last week released a demo video of its new H2-X "Kung Fu Legend Guardian" humanoid robot showing off combat moves, spurring the latest rally.
Unitree's results come amid a broader market rout led by Chinese AI and technology shares.
The STAR50 index of Shanghai-listed chip and AI leaders has tumbled 40% since July, wiping out around $480 billion in market value, while the blue-chip CSI300 has fallen about 20% from June highs.
Unitree, which competes with Tesla and Hyundai Motor Group-owned Boston Dynamics, has drawn global attention for its robots that run, dance and perform martial arts.
One of the world's biggest producers of humanoid and quadruped robots, it is backed by influential Chinese companies including Alibaba Group and Tencent.
Reporting by Laurie Chen and Shi Bu in Beijing; Editing by Joe Bavier, Tomasz Janowski and Emelia Sithole-Matarise
Source: Reuters