CATL's Q4 revenue increased by 36.6% year-on-year, with net profit attributable to shareholders soaring by 57.1%, marking the largest increase in two and a half years. The company plans to distribute 31.5 billion yuan for the whole year | Financial Report Insights

Under the backdrop of a relatively loose supply and demand in the industry and intensified price competition, CATL's profit significantly accelerated in the fourth quarter.

The financial report released on Monday showed that CATL's net profit attributable to shareholders in the fourth quarter of 2025 was 23.167 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 57.1%, further elevating from the year-on-year growth rate of the third quarter, and significantly higher than the market expectation of 40.9% as per LSEG statistics, marking the largest year-on-year increase in two and a half years. The net profit attributable to shareholders grew approximately 25% quarter-on-quarter, contributing about one-third of the annual revenue and profit, with a prominent year-end surge characteristic.

The revenue side also saw a surge at the year-end. In the fourth quarter, revenue reached 140.630 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 36.6%, and a substantial quarter-on-quarter growth.

Shareholder returns and financial safety net have been enhanced simultaneously: the company plans to distribute a cash dividend of 69.57 yuan (including tax) for every 10 shares, based on 4.532 billion shares after excluding repurchased shares, with an expected cash dividend of about 31.5 billion yuan; at the same time, the debt-to-asset ratio decreased to 61.94% (down 3.30 percentage points from the end of the previous year), with significant improvement in debt repayment indicators.

Comprehensive revenue returns to growth, profit elasticity released

From a three-year perspective, CATL's revenue in 2024 had a temporary decline, while in 2025 it rebounded to 423.7 billion yuan, reaching a peak; the profit side has been increasing for three consecutive years, indicating that beyond scale expansion, the company's profitability and comprehensive management of expenses/costs have shown stronger elasticity.

The financial report shows that CATL achieved revenue of 423.7 billion yuan in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 17.04%; net profit attributable to shareholders was 72.2 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 42.28%, with profit growth significantly outpacing revenue.

Profit quality has also strengthened: the net profit attributable to shareholders after deducting non-recurring items was 64.5 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 43.37%; net cash flow from operating activities was 133.2 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 37.35%. While profits grew significantly, cash collection capability further strengthened.

In terms of profit quality, the growth rates of net profit after deducting non-recurring items and net profit attributable to shareholders are close (43.37% vs 42.28%), indicating that profit improvement does not mainly rely on one-time gains, and operational improvements are more sustainable.

Breaking it down by quarter, revenue and profit in 2025 showed a quarterly upward trend:

• Q1-Q4 revenue was 84.7 billion yuan, 94.2 billion yuan, 104.2 billion yuan, and 140.6 billion yuan respectively;
• Q1-Q4 net profit attributable to shareholders was 14 billion yuan, 16.5 billion yuan, 18.5 billion yuan, and 23.2 billion yuan respectively;
• Q4 net profit margin was approximately 16.5% (231.67/1406.30), close to the first quarter, lower than the third quarter's approximately 17.8%.

This indicates that in an industry environment with intensified competition and relatively loose supply, the acceleration of the company's profits is mainly driven by the year-end revenue surge and the efficiency of expenses and turnover, with profit margin performance being more "stable."

Dividend plan: cash dividend of 69.57 yuan for every 10 shares, expected cash dividend of about 31.5 billion yuan

The company's profit distribution plan for 2025 is: based on 4.532 billion shares (total share capital of 4.564 billion shares minus 31.98 million shares repurchased), a cash dividend of 69.57 yuan (including tax) for every 10 shares, with no bonus shares or capital increase According to this calculation:

• Estimated total cash dividend: approximately 31.5 billion yuan
• Corresponding annual net profit attributable to the parent company: 72.201 billion yuan, with a dividend payout ratio of approximately 44%

Against the backdrop of intensified industry competition and improved cash flow for the company, the high cash dividend reinforces the certainty of shareholder returns and conveys the company's confidence in operational quality and financial safety to the market.

Significant Increase in Global Market Share, Competitive Advantage Continues to Strengthen

In terms of market share, CATL demonstrated overwhelming competitive advantages in the fourth quarter. Data shows that by December 2025, the company's global market share of power batteries soared to 43%, a significant increase of 7.5 percentage points from 35.5% in September, while the market share of second-tier battery manufacturers remained sluggish during the same period. In December 2025, the global installed capacity of power batteries reached 133GWh, a year-on-year increase of 21%, with CATL's installed capacity reaching 57GWh, a year-on-year increase of 30%, significantly outpacing the industry average growth rate.

For the entire year, the company's installed capacity of power batteries in 2025 was 464GWh, a year-on-year increase of 37%, higher than the global industry growth rate of 33%, maintaining its position as the world's number one for nine consecutive years; the shipment volume of energy storage batteries ranked first globally for five consecutive years, with annual sales of 121GWh, a year-on-year increase of 29.13%. The overseas market performed particularly well, with total overseas revenue of 129.641 billion yuan, accounting for 30.60% of total revenue, a year-on-year increase of 17.50%. With leading products and quality services, the company continues to secure core overseas clients such as VW, BMW, and Stellantis.

The impressive performance in the fourth quarter is attributed to the company's continuous investment in technology research and development and product innovation. In 2025, the company's R&D investment reached 22.147 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 19.02%. In the field of cutting-edge technology, new products such as the second-generation Shenxing ultra-fast charging battery, the Xiaoyao dual-core battery, and sodium-ion batteries have been scaled up, with the second-generation Shenxing ultra-fast charging battery being the world's first lithium iron phosphate battery that combines an 800-kilometer range with a peak 12C ultra-fast charging speed, continuously leading the industry's technological direction.

In terms of business layout, the company's "full-domain incremental" strategy has shown significant results. The battery swapping business is rapidly expanding, with a total of 1,325 battery swapping stations built by the end of 2025, including over 1,000 chocolate battery swapping stations and over 300 Qiji battery swapping stations. In the fourth quarter, battery swapping services exceeded 300,000 times, with a cumulative battery swapping volume of approximately 80 million kWh. The company continues to make breakthroughs in emerging fields, with its Peakfly Aviation ton-class eVTOL aircraft completing multiple flight verifications and nearly 900 electric vessels operating safely, forming a business ecosystem covering multiple scenarios such as passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, energy storage, low-altitude travel, and shipping