FAST NEWS: Nissin Foods chairman buys more shares

The latest: Kiyotaka Ando, chairman of Nissin Foods Co. Ltd. (1475.HK), purchased about 130,000 of the company’s shares on Sept. 28, raising his stake in the instant noodle pioneer from 1.98% to 2%, according to a new Hong Kong Stock Exchange filing.

Looking up: Ando increased his stake less than a month after Nissin announced its interim results, suggesting he is confident in the company’s prospects.

Take Note: Nissin Foods’ shares have been sluggish lately, down about 16% from their high of HK$7.09 in early May. Ando’s increase of his stake hasn’t done anything to help the company’s share price.

Digging Deeper: Nissin Foods has benefited from the Covid pandemic over the past three years due to its focus on the Mainland China and Hong Kong instant noodle markets. But its revenue for the first half of the year fell 6% to HK$1.93 billion ($250 million) as consumption patterns returned to more normal levels with the end of China’s strict Covid controls. The company’s cost of sales also decreased by 9.8% for the period to HK$1.27 billion, resulting in a 6.4% rise in its net profit to HK$171 million. Its gross margin also rose by 2.7 percentage points to 34.1%, benefiting from a price hike last year.

Market Reaction: Nissin Foods’ shares fluctuated slightly in Friday trade, closing up 1.7% to HK$6.05 by the midday break. It now trades at the lower end of its 52-week range.

Translation by A. Au

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