Dividend & Stake Increase to Mitigate Impact of Privatization Termination
发布时间:2026-06-15 来源:华泰证券
ENN Natural Gas announced on 12 June 2026 the termination of its plan to privatize ENN Energy and list the latter’s H-shares by introduction.The transaction,which had been initiated since March 2025,failed to secure all necessary approvals from the CSRC and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange within nearly 12 months.The company decided against extension,as the prolonged process was constraining its operational and management arrangements.ENN Natural Gas retains its~34.26%stake in ENN Energy following the termination of the transaction.The company also unveiled athree-year(2026-2028)shareholder return plan,committing to annual cash dividends of no less than 50%of attributable operating profit,and announced plans to increase its shareholding in ENN Energy—concrete steps to stabilize investor expectations.With no need to pay the~HKD53bn privatization consideration(cash plus share swap),the company’s cash flow position strengthens and its gearing ratio remains stable.Maintain BUY.
Earnings:minority interest structure unchanged
Following the termination,ENN Natural Gas continues to share in ENN Energy’s profits through its~34.26%stake at the existing ratio,with minority interests unchanged.Had the privatization succeeded,it could theoretically have added~RMB4-5bn per year to attributable operating profit(i.e.core profit).With the termination of the transaction in place,our prior 2026E forecasts—for an attributable net profit of RMB5,059mn and an attributable operating profit of RMB5,297mn—require no revision,as they had not factored in any profit accretion from the privatization.We think that the company’s plan to increase its ENN Energy stake could gradually lift the shareholding ratio,partially offsetting the long-term synergy loss.
Dividends:clear payout plan to lift dividend yield
The termination means that ENN Natural Gas no longer needs to raise the~HKD18bn consideration or issue 2,188mn new H-shares,freeing up operating cash flow for shareholder returns.The company also released its three-year(2026-2028)shareholder return plan,committing to annual cash dividends of no less than 50%of attributable operating profit.We expect dividend yields to rise steadily over 2026/2027/2028,reaching 6.2/7.0/7.9%.
Valuation:dividends and share increase providing floor
Privatizing alarge Hong Kong-listed company involves approvals from multiple regulators—the CSRC,Hong Kong Stock Exchange,NDRC,MOFCOM,and foreign exchange authorities—and the nearly 12-month process had already consumed significant management resources.Following the termination,the valuation premium previously priced in on expectations of 100%consolidation synergies should unwind,potentially weighing on the share price in the near term.That said,we deem the three-year dividend plan attractive to long-term capital seeking stable returns,and we think that the planned increase in ENN Energy’s stake signals management’s conviction in the subsidiary’s long-term value.
Maintain earnings forecasts,trim target price
We forecast attributable operating profit of RMB5,297/6,082/6,692mn over 2026/2027/2028,with core EPS of RMB1.71/1.96/2.16.The peer group’s overall valuation has de-rated(Wind consensus 2026E PE mean revised down from 15.8x to 13.7x since our previous report on 30 April 2026).Factoring in the earnings upside potential of direct gas sales and the terminal business,as well as the potential long-term value uplift from the planned ENN Energy stake increase,we assign a2026E PE of 13.7x,yielding our target price of RMB23.43(previous RMB27.00,based on 2026E PE of 15.8x).
Risks:weaker natural gas demand than we expect;lower throughput at Zhoushan terminal than we expect;uncertainty over price and timing of ENN Energy stake increase;dividend policy execution risk.