Reporter Sun Lei
In the past period, Xiaopeng Motors has been a relatively 'technology oriented' enterprise. We have taken technology as the starting point and gradually transitioned from technology to products. Starting from the second half of this year, I will make commercial capabilities one of Xiaopeng's key focuses. "After submitting the" answer sheet "for the first half of the year, Xiaopeng Motors Chairman and CEO He Xiaopeng said during the Q2 financial conference call this year.
On the evening of August 20th, Xiaopeng Motors released its Q2 2024 financial report, which showed that it achieved a revenue of 8.11 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 60.2%; Net loss of 1.28 billion yuan, compared to a net loss of 2.8 billion yuan in the same period last year; The gross profit margin was 14%, compared to -3.9% in the same period last year.
Xiaopeng Motors Official WeChat
In terms of sales, Xiaopeng Motors delivered a total of 30200 vehicles in the second quarter, an increase of 30.2% year-on-year, but this figure is still lower than new forces such as Ideal Auto and NIO. It is reported that the Xiaopeng MONA M03 will be launched on August 27th, while the Xiaopeng P7+will be launched in the fourth quarter.
Starting from the launch of Xiaopeng's new car MONA M03, Xiaopeng will have multiple competitive new product models and upgraded models intensively launched in the next three years. In addition, the planning for AI technology and category innovation, as well as the achievements of technology cost reduction, will be reflected in these products, which will bring sustainable sales growth to Xiaopeng, "He Xiaopeng said during the financial report conference call.
Cost reduction and stacking technology to monetize and increase gross profit margin
Among numerous financial indicators, Xiaopeng Motors' gross profit margin has shown significant changes. According to the previous financial report data of Xiaopeng Motors, its gross profit margins from the first quarter of 2022 to the second quarter of 2024 were 12.2%, 10.9%, 13.5%, 8.7%, 1.7%, -3.9%, -2.7%, 6.2%, 12.9%, and 14%, respectively. This means that Xiaopeng Motors' gross profit margin in the second quarter reached a new high since 2022.
It is understood that gross profit margin is one of the important indicators to measure a company's profitability. The higher the gross profit margin, the stronger the company's profitability in the sales process. Conversely, the lower the gross profit margin, the poorer the company's profitability. It should be noted that the increase in gross profit margin of Xiaopeng Motors in the second quarter was achieved when both delivery volume and automotive revenue did not recover to the same period in 2022.
Regarding this, Gu Hongdi, Honorary Vice Chairman and Co President of Xiaopeng Motors, explained, "With the realization of technology cost reduction and the technology monetization income from Volkswagen's strategic cooperation, the company's gross profit margin will further increase to 14.0% in the second quarter of 2024. With the global market sales growth driven by the large product cycle, Xiaopeng Motors' economies of scale, operating efficiency, and cash flow will improve accordingly
According to the Daily Economic News, both the Xiaopeng MONA M03 and Xiaopeng P7+have removed high-precision maps and reduced some sensors, no longer equipped with LiDAR. As a result of exceeding the established goals of hardware cost reduction and vehicle BOM optimization for autonomous driving, P7+has greater advantages in technological innovation and cost He Xiaopeng revealed that.
In fact, what we are seeing today, including technology cost reduction, design cost reduction, supply chain cost reduction, and our cooperation with Volkswagen, have all brought about overall business improvement. In the second half of this year or even the whole year of next year, we will continue to see the quarterly results of (Xiaopeng Motors), "He Xiaopeng added.
In terms of cooperation with Volkswagen, Xiaopeng Motors has signed a main agreement on EV architecture technology cooperation with Volkswagen Group to jointly develop electric architectures suitable for CMP and MEB platform models. Starting from 2026, all local models produced by Volkswagen on CMP and MEB platforms will be equipped with this architecture, and the first model is expected to be mass-produced within 24 months. In He Xiaopeng's view, cooperation will create greater synergies and strategic value for both parties.
According to the reporter's understanding, the revenue generated from the electronic and electrical architecture cooperation between Xiaopeng Motors and Volkswagen Group will be included in Xiaopeng Motors' revenue starting from the second half of this year. At the same time, Xiaopeng Motors is also in communication with other car companies regarding cooperation in autonomous driving technology, in order to seek more financial returns.
Expected delivery volume to reach a new high in the fourth quarter
Looking ahead to the future development, Xiaopeng Motors expects to deliver 41000 to 45000 vehicles in the third quarter, an increase of 35.7% to 49% compared to the previous quarter. Xiaopeng Motors' sales guidance for the third quarter is 41000 to 44000 units, exceeding expectations by 38000 units. This means that its September sales may approach 20000 units, and the significant increase in sales compared to the previous quarter may be mainly contributed by MONA M03, "said Dolphin Investment Research.
It is reported that the Xiaopeng MONA M03 is positioned as an A-class pure electric sedan, with a starting price of no more than 135900 yuan. It will challenge the segmented market where BYD's main products are located with technologies such as intelligent driving. During the earnings conference call, He Xiaopeng stated that since the pre-sale of Xiaopeng MONA M03 began on August 8th, its orders have exceeded the performance of G6 in the same period last year.
From the historical sales of Xiaopeng Motors, when Xiaopeng G6 was launched, it achieved monthly sales of 8000-9000 units with advantages such as intelligent driving and pricing. However, in January of this year, sales declined to about 2000 units; The redesigned Xiaopeng G9 was delivered in October last year and achieved a monthly sales peak of nearly 6000 units with intelligent driving and SKU simplification. However, in February of this year, sales dropped to less than 1000 units.
In fact, this issue is also one of the most important problems we need to solve, "said He Xiaopeng." In this regard, we have done a lot of things, including changes in supply chain management, platformization of the overall supply chain, and our requirements for production quality. Whether it's Xiaopeng's MONA or Xiaopeng P7+, we have raised our production quality requirements to a very high level
He Xiaopeng believes that the delivery ramp up of MONA M03 and P7+will significantly expand Xiaopeng's market share. Xiaopeng Motors is confident that its delivery volume will increase significantly month on month in the third and fourth quarters of this year, and reach a new high in delivery volume in the fourth quarter. He also stated that the internal organizational management reform of Xiaopeng Motors has been underway for two years, with plans made in product planning, technology, marketing, and other aspects. The current marketing system can now accommodate more car models.
In addition, overseas markets have also become an important growth pole for Xiaopeng Motors' sales. Overseas delivery also accounts for a considerable proportion, with the majority of the delivered models being the Xiaopeng G9 and Xiaopeng G6. These major models will have a certain proportion of the delivery volume in the third quarter, "said Gu Hongdi." In the second quarter, our product delivery proportion in overseas markets exceeded 10%, and it is expected that the overseas delivery proportion in the third quarter will reach about 15%
As of July, Xiaopeng has entered 30 countries and regions including Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America through distributor partners, and has more than 70 sales stores. In the second half of this year, Xiaopeng will enter more right-hand drive markets, including multiple countries in the UK, Australia, and Southeast Asia. At the same time, the number of international sales stores is expected to double in the second half of this year, "said He Xiaopeng.