Citigroup has released a research report maintaining its target price of HK$305 for Montage Tech (HKG: 06809) and reiterating a 'Buy' rating. The bank views the premium of the H-shares over the company's A-shares (SSE: 688008) as reflecting international investors' favor for this scarce AI-themed investment target.

Following the company's announcement of its preliminary first-half 2026 results, the Korean antitrust investigation, and its share buyback plan, the bank conducted follow-up discussions with the management. The bank believes that, despite short-term stock price volatility, the company's business fundamentals remain robust.

Benefiting from improved substrate supply constraints, revenue and profit for the second quarter of this year both reached historic highs. Contributions from new products (Gen 3/4 RCD, MRCD/MDB, PCIe retimer, CXL) have further increased.

The report notes that the Korea Fair Trade Commission searched Montage Tech's Korean office on July 15th, investigating potential anti-competitive activities in the industry. This investigation is industry-wide in nature and is not specifically targeting the company. Montage Tech is fully cooperating with the investigation, and neither the company nor its directors or employees have been charged with any wrongdoing. Korean operations remain normal.

Furthermore, the company's chairman has proposed an A-share buyback plan of RMB 300 million to 600 million to demonstrate management's confidence in the company.