Adrian Loh of UOB Kay Hian has become more bullish about Yangzijiang Shipbuilding, with a higher target price of $3.90 from $3.60, as he expects the shipbuilder' s margins to be sustained at an " elevated" level this coming year.

When the company reported its 1HFY2025, its margins reached 35.2%, up 9.3 percentage points y-o-y, thanks to lower steel costs, and also a more favourable RMB vs USD exchange rate. At a recent conference organised by UOB Kay Hian, Yangzijiang guided that such margins are sustainable this coming year.

The company' s shipbuilding slots, according to Loh, are now full until at least 2029, especially for large vessels. As such, it played down its ability to garner more of the series build, multi-billion-dollar orders that the market witnessed in 2024.