BYD Q3 profit jumps 28%; exports surge, inventory rises 60% — SkimNews
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- BYD's quarterly results showed revenue of ¥221.49 billion, up 13.6% year over year, and attributable net profit of ¥10.02 billion, up 28.1%. It was BYD's best quarterly profit since the end of 2024 and its first revenue growth after four straight declines, but it missed the ¥11.4-¥12.95 billion range expected by brokerages polled by Reuters.
- BYD's exports reached 550,704 vehicles in Q3, up 137% from 232,806 a year earlier, out of 1,323,065 total sales, and now represent 42% of sales. Non-export sales, mostly in China, fell about 12%; calculated gross margin was 18.0%, down from about 18.9% in Q2 but up from 17.6% a year earlier.
- BYD's inventory rose 60% to ¥221.58 billion between Dec. 31, 2025 and Sept. 30, 2026 while year-to-date sales fell 3.9%; trade receivables climbed 53% to ¥56.47 billion. Nine-month asset impairment losses increased 68% to ¥2.71 billion, mostly from inventory write-downs tied to the expanded inventory scale.
- BYD's liquidity weakened over the same period: cash and trading securities fell 45% to ¥71.72 billion, while bills payable rose 251% to ¥78.86 billion. Short-term bank borrowings were cut roughly in half to ¥18.67 billion, but bonds outstanding tripled to ¥14.99 billion.
- BYD's finance expenses swung from a ¥2.94 billion gain in the first nine months of 2025 to ¥7.37 billion of expense in 2026, a change of more than ¥10 billion that the company attributed to exchange losses.
- BYD's cash generation strengthened in the first nine months: operating cash flow rose 33% to ¥54.47 billion, customer prepayments climbed 81% to ¥92.95 billion, and cash spent on factories and equipment fell 24% to ¥87.38 billion.
- BYD's nine-month performance showed revenue of ¥566.30 billion, up just 0.01%, and net profit down 4.2% at ¥22.34 billion. R&D expenses fell 17% to ¥36.28 billion, partly because BYD capitalized more development costs this year.
Why it matters: For BYD shareholders, the 28% profit rebound came with a material trade-off: Q3 profit of ¥10.02 billion missed the ¥11.4-¥12.95 billion Reuters brokerage range, while cash and trading securities dropped 45% to ¥71.72 billion. The export engine is working, but overseas inventory, receivables and a more than ¥10 billion finance-cost swing are weighing on liquidity and earnings.
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