US Stock IPO Analysis | Racing to the US Stock Market, ZEEKR, the globally evolving company, presses the "acceleration key" for growth

ZEEKR (ZK.US), driving in the "fast lane" of development, is about to usher in a new highlight moment.

Recently, ZEEKR submitted an updated red herring prospectus to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), planning to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the stock symbol "ZK". The prospectus shows that ZEEKR will issue 17.5 million American Depositary Shares (ADS), with each ADS corresponding to 10 ordinary shares, at an offering price range of $18 to $21 per ADS. If all goes well, ZEEKR will set a new record for the fastest IPO in the history of new energy vehicle companies.

In the view of Zhitong Finance APP, ZEEKR's phenomenal performance is not surprising. Outside the capital market, ZEEKR, which was founded just three years ago, has already rapidly risen to become a "leader" among Chinese independent brand car companies. The latest data shows that in the first 4 months of this year, ZEEKR's cumulative deliveries reached 49,148 units, firmly securing the top spot in sales among Chinese pure electric vehicle brands with sales of over 200,000 units since 2024.

The strong sales performance undoubtedly accelerates ZEEKR's listing process. However, compared to the achievements already made, secondary market investors may also not overlook ZEEKR's growth potential. Currently, ZEEKR is at a key period of profit breakthrough and global expansion, and as the most promising automotive technology company, ZEEKR's outstanding competitiveness is expected to accelerate in the future and be fully demonstrated in sales and financial data. As the company fulfills its growth expectations, ZEEKR's capital market prospects naturally deserve optimistic expectations from the outside world.

Breaking through the encirclement and running with "acceleration"

In the hundred-year history of the automotive industry, brands large and small are numerous, but ZEEKR, founded in 2021, seems more like a "atypical" player. In March 2021, Geely Auto (00175) announced the establishment of a joint venture company ZEEKR Intelligent Technology at the 2020 annual financial report meeting. The ZEEKR brand was officially launched the following month. From then to the current sprint for listing, as a "rising star," ZEEKR has proven that it can not only "roll out" products but also "roll out" sales, gradually exploring a unique growth path with its own distinctive characteristics in an industry environment dominated by homogenization.

Going back to 2021, in October of that year, ZEEKR's first car, ZEEKR 001, began deliveries, and in less than 4 months, the model achieved 10,000 deliveries. In October 2022, just one year later, ZEEKR 001's monthly delivery volume reached 10,119 units, becoming the first Chinese luxury pure electric vehicle model to achieve a monthly delivery volume of over 10,000 units.

With ZEEKR 001 leading the way, ZEEKR subsequently launched ZEEKR 009, ZEEKR X, ZEEKR 007, and most recently, ZEEKR MIX, which made its global debut at the recent Beijing Auto Show. The company's product lineup has shown differentiated and diversified characteristics. Driven by a strong product cycle, ZEEKR's delivery volume in the first 4 months of this year increased by 111% year-on-year, with the monthly delivery volume in April reaching 16,089 units, a 99% year-on-year increase and a 24% month-on-month increase, setting a new historical highWith sales soaring, ZEEKR's pursuit of an IPO at this time is a natural fit. However, compared to its predecessors, ZEEKR has shown a "fast-paced" characteristic even in the sprint to go public. For comparison, Tesla took a full 7 years from establishment to IPO, while domestic newcomers like "Li Xiaowei" spent 4 years, 6 years, and 5 years respectively.

The reason why ZEEKR can break through among a strong lineup of new energy vehicle companies and set the record for the fastest IPO in history is not only due to its eye-catching sales data but also the comprehensive breakthrough in financial data that naturally provides the company with confidence.

Data shows that from 2021 to 2023, ZEEKR's total revenue was 6.5 billion yuan, 31.9 billion yuan, and 51.7 billion yuan respectively, with a corresponding compound annual growth rate of up to 182%. Among them, the revenue from vehicle sales during the period was 1.54 billion yuan, 19.67 billion yuan, and 33.9 billion yuan respectively, with a compound annual growth rate of 369%.

While revenue is rapidly increasing, ZEEKR's profitability is also continuously improving and optimizing in the process of scale effects. In 2023, ZEEKR's gross profit margin rose to 15%, significantly higher than 1.8% in 2021 and 4.7% in 2022. In the fourth quarter of 2023, ZEEKR's gross profit margin had already reached 15.3%, the highest single-quarter level in the company's history.

Looking at the overall trend of ZEEKR's core financial data changes, it is currently at a critical time window for both scale and profitability breakthroughs, with signs of further growth momentum. For secondary market investors, ZEEKR, which clearly has untapped growth potential, is also welcomed by all parties.

Enhanced Growth Momentum in U.S. Stock Market Listing

What is the underlying strength behind ZEEKR's rise to the top? There may be many answers, but one that cannot be avoided is its powerful technical architecture.

For the automotive industry, earning market and consumer respect is never achieved through simple imitation or material accumulation. A strong architecture is one of the basic conditions that support car companies to grow and strengthen. Since its establishment, all products used by ZEEKR adopt the SEA Haohan architecture, which established the leading advantage of ZEEKR products from the beginning.

It is understood that the SEA Haohan architecture is the world's first pure electric architecture, with the largest bandwidth globally, covering full sizes from A-class cars to E-class cars, meeting all styling requirements for sedans, SUVs, MPVs, small city cars, sports cars, pickups, and future travel vehicles.

Based on the above technical architecture, ZEEKR has successively launched 5 highly competitive models in their respective segmented markets over the past three years. Additionally, it is worth noting that ZEEKR recently officially released the all-new Haohan-M architecture, with the ZEEKR MIX being the first family travel product based on this architecture.

With product strength continuously evolving, this is backed by ZEEKR's increasing annual investment in research and development. Data shows that from 2021 to 2023, ZEEKR's R&D investment was 3.16 billion yuan, 5.446 billion yuan, and 8.369 billion yuan respectively, showing a linear upward trend. The accumulated R&D investment in the past three complete years has approached nearly 17 billion yuanIn addition to a solid technical architecture, high security is also a major reason for ZEEKR's rapid market capture. Since its establishment, ZEEKR has delivered over 240,000 vehicles with zero battery combustion incidents. Moreover, in terms of infrastructure, ZEEKR has already pulled ahead of its peers. By the end of April this year, ZEEKR's ultra-fast charging piles have exceeded 2,500, firmly ranking first in the industry.

From a capital market perspective, for ZEEKR, going public is not only a natural progression after leading in product sales and achieving upward breakthroughs in financial data, but also signifies the company's stride into a new development stage.

Choosing the United States as the listing venue is also a logical decision. As we all know, the U.S. stock market is one of the largest and most mature capital markets globally, with high liquidity. Listing in the U.S. will facilitate ZEEKR's smoother entry into the global market, utilizing international capital for expansion.

In fact, as a growth-oriented company with strong globalization characteristics, sailing overseas and expanding globally has always been an important part of ZEEKR's long-term strategy. It is understood that ZEEKR has a total of 6 R&D centers worldwide, with over 7,000 R&D personnel. Currently, ZEEKR has started sales in countries such as Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, and Thailand. Additionally, ZEEKR stores have gradually entered countries like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Qatar. The company is expected to conduct sales operations in 50 countries globally by the end of this year.

It is foreseeable that after completing its listing on the U.S. stock market, ZEEKR's growth momentum will be further enhanced. With leading technology and competitive products, ZEEKR is expected to continue its "ZEEKR-style acceleration" in the highly competitive automotive industry