The Zhitong Finance App learned that Citi released a research report saying that Prada (01913)'s third-quarter sales were in line with market expectations. The bank maintained a “neutral” rating, and the target price was HK$39.9.
Prada (01913) recorded group sales of 1.49 billion euros in the third quarter, in line with market expectations; after excluding Versace, there was an endogenous increase of 1% based on a fixed exchange rate, an increase of 7% compared to the previous quarter, while market expectations remained flat. Among them, Prada retail increased 1%, in line with market expectations, and same-store sales remained roughly the same; Miu Miu retail fell 3%, up 1% from market expectations, but remained flat after excluding the Middle East; and the wholesale business rose 12%.
The bank pointed out that the slowdown in growth was affected by weak passenger flow from China and Japan and the higher comparative base of the US and South Korea, but management revealed in a conference call that the performance in September and October had improved slightly compared to July and August. The market response was strong after the release of the Miu Miu Spring and Summer 2027 series, while Versace plans to increase investment or limit the room for losses to narrow in 2027.
Citi expects the market to remain largely unchanged in its sales and EBIT forecasts for the 2026 and 2027 fiscal years, and believes that the Prada brand's performance is relatively strong, October sales are slightly positive, and profits are stabilizing, and the stock price will respond slightly positively.