At this moment, if you try to select the two most powerful "big devils" in the global new energy market, it must be Tesla and BYD.
In the past 2023, both have undoubtedly set their own historical bests. And the multi-dimensional-for-tat between them has always been talked about by everyone.
Homeopathically, entering 2024, when everyone firmly believes that Tesla and BYD will fight more and more, the plot of the story has not developed in the direction imagined.
In the past quarter, it can be said: "Musk looked at Wang Chuanfu, his eyes were full of envy. ”
As an argument, focus on Tesla first. In the first three months, it produced 433,371 new vehicles, which was largely in line with expectations.
However, when it came to the all-important delivery level, there was a complete "blood crash", with only 386,810 units performing, a year-on-year decline of 8.53%, and a quarter-on-quarter decline of more than 20%, reaching 20.16%, the worst performance since the third quarter of 2022.
BYD, on the other hand, sold 624,398 units in the first three months. Obviously, with the joint blessing of the two technical routes of pure electric and plug-in hybrid, the Chinese auto market, which is becoming more and more involuted, has a stronger ability to resist risks.
The uneven performance of the above-mentioned terminals was quickly mapped to the first quarter financial reports of the two "big devils".
Correspondingly, Tesla's total revenue, net profit, including gross profit margin, and even cash flow, several key data are mainly marked with the word "down".
In contrast, just last night, BYD also revealed the answer.
In the first quarter, the revenue was 124.944 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.97%, the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company in the first quarter was 4.569 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 10.62%, and the net profit attributable to the parent company after deducting non-recurring gains and losses increased by 5.24% year-on-year to 3.752 billion yuan.
In the face of such results, especially considering the volatility of the general environment, I can't help but sigh: "This financial report data reflects BYD's steady performance in the current market environment and the positive effect of its continuous investment in emerging fields." Despite the uncertainties in the global economy, the growth in the first quarter still showed strong market competitiveness. ”
Of course, investors have also reacted positively to BYD's performance, believing that it not only shows the company's profitability, but also indicates its long-term growth potential in the new energy vehicle market.
In BYD's first-quarter financial report, there is another data that is particularly noteworthy.
Its R&D expenses increased by 70% from 6.238 billion yuan in the previous period to 10.610 billion yuan, accounting for 8.49% of total revenue, an increase of 3.29 percentage points year-on-year.
As we all know, technology has always been BYD's proudest moat. Looking back on the whole of 2023, in fact, its R&D expenses have skyrocketed to 39.575 billion yuan, exceeding the annual profit, a year-on-year increase of 112.15%. After capitalization, R&D investment reached 39.918 billion yuan, accounting for 6.63% of operating income, an increase of 1.86% from 4.77% in 2022
Perhaps, there are readers who have no concept of nearly 40 billion yuan of R&D investment, as a reference, Tesla's annual R&D investment in 2023 is equivalent to about 28.4 billion yuan. Simple conversion, the difference between the two is 11.6 billion yuan.
It is precisely based on this background that it is completely foreseeable that in order to consolidate its leading edge, BYD will only become more resolute and efficient in R&D investment this year, in all dimensions related to the company's development.
After all, as early as the performance communication meeting after the release of the 2023 financial report, Wang Chuanfu, chairman of BYD, threw a lot of bombshells.
In addition to saying that the fifth-generation DM-i hybrid technology will be launched in May, the fuel consumption of the feed will be reduced to 2.9 liters / 100 kilometers, and the range of 2,000 kilometers on full fuel and full battery will be officially announced for the first time, and BYD's sales target for this year will continue to maintain 20% growth on the basis of 2023. In other words, at least 3,628,800 units will be sold, close to 3,630,000 units.
In addition, Wang Chuanfu also believes that the new energy industry has entered the knockout round, and 2024-2026 is a decisive battle of scale, cost and technology. In the next 3-5 years, the share of joint venture brands in China's auto market will drop from 40% to 10%, of which 30% is the growth space of independent brands. To put it more bluntly, the landscape will be completely reshaped.
And continue to focus on the ongoing 18th Beijing Auto Show, BYD's layout and offensive can also be described as "terrifying".
From looking up at the booth, to the Equation Leopard booth, to the DENZA booth, to the joint booth of Dynasty Network and Ocean Network, everyone can be said to have done their best to put their latest products in the spotlight.
For example, look up to the U7, for example, the equation Leopard Leopard 8, for example, the Denza Z9GT, and for example, the BYD Qin L and the Seal 06...... In different subdivisions, there is no doubt that no one is good.
In short, at the end of the article, I borrowed a passage from the research report of a securities institution: "BYD, as an industry leader, has a rich product matrix, covering almost all categories of models existing in the market. Even if the competition in the new energy vehicle industry is becoming increasingly intensified, the company can still face it calmly based on its long-term technology accumulation and production and operation capabilities. ”
Yes, with the first quarter as a foundation, it is not surprising that BYD will still create many new milestones this year.