Haidilao gains US$696 million in market value as Chinese hotpot chain shuts one-fifth of restaurants to halt losses, stock rout
- Hotpot restaurant chain plans to close or suspend about 300 outlets because of poor table turnover and operating results, exchange filing says
- Industry growth is slowing as the pandemic offers reality check to aggressive expansion in recent years
The stock jumped 4.8 per cent to HK$22.05 at the close of trading on Friday. The stock rose 5.5 per cent on Friday from the lowest level since February 2019, making it the best two-day advance in two months.
It will continue to “pay attention to the restaurants with unsatisfying results of operations, including overseas restaurants, and take improvement measures accordingly,” the Beijing-based group said in an exchange filing late Friday.
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Chinese hotpot restaurant chain adapts as coronavirus fears push communal meals off the menu
Since ending 2020 with a 91 per cent gain, it has been one painful slump for shareholders. The stock has lost 59 per cent of its value since becoming a Hang Seng Index constituent on March 15, wiping out more than HK$184 billion of its capitalisation. The index fell 12 per cent over the same period.