Shares in CATL surged 14.5% to RMB 180.85 ($25.2) on Monday after Morgan Stanley lifted its rating on the stock to Buy from Hold and forecast the Chinese electric vehicle battery maker to return to strong profit growth in the coming months this year. The analysts raised CATL’s price target from RMB 184 to RMB 210, saying a brutal competitive battle in battery prices will end in 2024, which could weigh on its profit in the first quarter but result in a strong recovery later on. The news also comes after CATL regained its top ranking in the affordable lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery category with a market share of 41.8% at home from January to February, followed by BYD’s 29.8%, figures from the China Automobile Battery Innovation Alliance showed. The battery giant in January forecast net profit to grow by up to 48.1% to RMB 45.5 billion in 2023, a slowdown from 92.9% a year prior and 185.3% in 2021. [Caixin, in Chinese]
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