What the brokers said...
Vitasoy International is a Hong Kong-based soyabean drink maker.
About 12 months ago, Vitasoy announced net income of HK$128.1 million on total turnover of HK$2.01 billion for the year to March, representing a year-on-year growth of 1.58 per cent and 6.68 per cent respectively. It announced a final dividend of 5.1 HK cents per share.
At that time, ING Barings said in a report the company's financial results were in line with expectations.
Vitasoy's operating margins substantially improved from 12.9 per cent in financial year 2000 to 15.2 per cent in the 2001 financial year due to the lower cost of raw materials from centralised sourcing in China and greater production efficiency achieved after the installation of a new distilled water plant.
ING put a buy recommendation on the stock, with a target price of HK$1.45.
It also said Vitasoy's management confirmed operating margins would remain stable for Hong Kong and expected this trend to be sustained for the remainder of last financial year.
Graphic: then07gwz
