CATL (03750) opened nearly 3% lower, down 2.87% at HK$400 as of press time, with turnover of HK$202 million.

The company disclosed its 2026 third-quarter report on the evening of October 20. Third-quarter revenue reached RMB 165.221 billion, up 58.58% year-on-year, while net profit attributable to shareholders was RMB 21.246 billion, up 14.54% year-on-year but down 5.77% quarter-on-quarter.

Third-quarter profit came in below market expectations, mainly due to changes in product mix, cuts to export tax rebates, and consumption tax impacts. Asset impairment losses increased by RMB 1.2 billion quarter-on-quarter in the same period, most of which were inventory write-downs caused by lithium carbonate price fluctuations.

JPMorgan recently issued a research note downgrading CATL's Hong Kong-listed rating from "overweight" to "neutral," and cutting its target price from HK$725 to HK$500. The brokerage cited concerns that the focus has shifted from demand to profitability, industry profitability may deteriorate faster than expected, and profits across the supply chain are being redistributed.