YOFC (06869) dropped over 4% again, having declined more than 30% from its September high of HK$65. As of press time, the stock was down 3.92% at HK$45.06 with trading volume of HK$676 million.
On the news front, Nomura released a research report stating that YOFC's rally this year was primarily driven by market expectations that AI data centers would adopt high-end products such as G.654E fiber and hollow fiber, as well as market belief that the group's subsidiary ChangXin BoChuan would benefit from strong demand growth for optical cables and connectors from global cloud service providers.
The firm believes that China Mobile's recent fiber optic bidding results indicate that YOFC's market share and average selling prices have both declined, which may pressure earnings starting from the third quarter of this year. The firm considers that the current stock price already reflects the positive factors from AI business expansion and has downgraded its rating from "Buy" to "Neutral" while significantly raising its target price from HK$18.6 to HK$52.