The global medical imaging sector is experiencing a collective value revaluation. On Wednesday Eastern Time, cardiac AI diagnostics company HeartFlow Inc (HTFL.US), just 4 days after its IPO, saw its stock price surge to a high of $33.24, representing a 74.9% increase from its $19 IPO price, reaching a market capitalization of $2.698 billion. On the same day, leading U.S. medical imaging services provider RadNet (RDNT.US) also hit a historic high of $68.41, with a total market capitalization of $5.26 billion.

The strong performance of these two U.S. stocks collectively reveals the core theme driving current valuation upgrades in the medical imaging industry: AI is accelerating its transformation from a technological concept into a dual driving force of commercial value and clinical efficiency. Whether through RadNet's scaled operations plus AI-assisted diagnostics, or HeartFlow's AI-driven restructuring of cardiac imaging assessment processes, both validate that "AI + Medical Imaging" has become the key logic for capital markets to redefine industry value.

As leading third-party medical imaging service providers in China and the U.S., the outstanding performance of RadNet and HeartFlow Inc provides highly valuable reference points for market assessment of Hong Kong-listed peer RIMAG GROUP (02522).

Behind RadNet's stock price strength lies clear commercial logic: achieving commercial breakthroughs through AI and building scale-based competitive moats through acquisitions. Currently, RadNet, as America's largest independent imaging center operator, runs over 380 imaging centers across 8 states, generating $1.83 billion in revenue and $38.84 million in net profit in 2024.

Meanwhile, HeartFlow Inc demonstrates AI's disruptive potential in specialized imaging fields—its AI platform can precisely assess coronary artery stenosis without invasive catheterization, significantly reducing patient risks and healthcare costs, propelling the company from technical validation into a commercial breakthrough phase.

RIMAG GROUP shares the third-party medical imaging sector with RadNet and HeartFlow Inc, but through its unique positioning combining "traditional service sharing models + AI data ecosystem" within a single enterprise, it has carved out a differentiated development path.

A profit alert released on August 4 showed RIMAG GROUP expects H1 2025 revenue of RMB 450-480 million, up 8.8%-16% year-on-year, with net profit of RMB 14.5-16.5 million, surging 1350%-1550% year-on-year. This marks the company's first interim high growth following its initial profitability in 2023, signaling that traditional imaging services have gradually crossed the break-even point and establishing the foundation for AI strategy commercialization takeoff.

Notably, while RadNet's AI applications remain primarily procurement-based and HeartFlow Inc focuses on the single specialty of cardiac imaging, RIMAG GROUP constructs a more compelling second growth curve through its "stores-services-data-AI" integrated approach:

A. Store Network: Based on publicly available data before the interim report, RIMAG GROUP operates 106 imaging centers covering 16 provinces and cities nationwide, with annual scan volumes exceeding 10 million cases. It is the only systematic, comprehensive imaging service provider serving public medical institutions in China.

B. Services: Light-asset capability modules are rapidly covering the market, forming flexible combinations of individual empowerment products. The company added nearly 400 B2B clients in the first half, significantly boosting from 500+ clients served over the previous decade, continuously contributing high-margin revenue. The company is also leveraging capability modules to expand medical services overseas, rapidly expanding domestic and international market share.

C. Data: The company generates 20,000-30,000 standardized imaging data cases daily, building the world's fastest-growing single-volume imaging database. It has successfully listed data resources on data exchanges, planning to unlock data value through data governance service solutions and subsequent data asset monetization.

D. AI: The incubated AI company "YingHe Medical" released the world's first medical imaging foundation large model in January 2025, establishing research collaborations with over ten top-tier tertiary hospitals for anatomical AI development. AI reading accuracy in lung and chest scenarios is expected to exceed 95%, with plans for official commercial launch and billing in Q3 2025.

RIMAG GROUP's ambitions extend beyond the domestic market. Its "CDH model" (imaging diagnostics + physician management + hospital cooperation) has been successfully replicated in Hong Kong/Macau, Singapore/Malaysia, and East Africa, with overseas business revenue expected to reach 30% within 5 years. By exporting highly cost-effective "Made in China + overseas cooperation" solutions, RIMAG GROUP is building a global medical resource integration platform with imaging services as the entry point.

Currently, RIMAG GROUP's market capitalization stands at only HK$6.3 billion, while its business scale and market potential far exceed this valuation, with a price-to-book ratio of just 4.045 (midday August 14), significantly below industry averages. In comparison, while U.S.-based RadNet has reached a $5.2 billion market cap, its profitability remains weak with a net margin of only 0.7%. HeartFlow Inc remains in losses: $96.43 million loss in 2024 and $32.30 million loss in Q1 2025.

More importantly, for more complex comparisons, this valuation paradigm should factor in China's structural opportunities: RadNet and HeartFlow Inc operate in the U.S. where third-party imaging penetration has reached 40-50% with annual growth below 5%, while China's current penetration rate is only about 1% (according to Frost & Sullivan), with market size expected to reach RMB 18.6 billion by 2030 at a CAGR of 30.7%—implying 15 times the potential growth space of the U.S. market.

In conclusion, while RadNet wins a $5 billion valuation through "existing capacity efficiency" and HeartFlow Inc opens an $1.8 billion market cap space via "AI specialty breakthroughs," RIMAG GROUP is telling a more explosive Chinese story through "incremental market explosion + full industry chain AI closed loop + scarce license barriers." In a hundred-billion sector with penetration below 5%, the leading player that has achieved profitability while possessing scarce third-party imaging licenses and AI ecosystem positioning should command a premium, not a discount.

For long-term capital, the current HK$6.358 billion market capitalization may represent the last window to position in China's version of "RadNet + HeartFlow Inc."