According to the news from the Red Star Capital Bureau on June 24, the official website of the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System shows that Xijiu has withdrawn from Kweichow Moutai Group Finance Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Moutai Finance Company"). Judging from the information after the equity change, the 5% shares of Moutai Finance Company previously held by Xijiu have been placed under the ownership of Moutai Group. After the change, Xijiu no longer holds shares in Moutai Finance Company.
For the reason and purpose of this move, the Red Star Capital Bureau contacted and interviewed Maotai Group and Xijiu, but as of press time, neither party had given a clear reply.
An industry insider pointed out to the Red Star Capital Bureau that this move means that Xijiu may be listed independently. "As long as some equity, bond, and debt relationships are resolved, and at the same time, the issue of horizontal competition with Maotai Group is focused on, Xijiu is in line with the current listing standards."
September 13, 2021, Chaoyang Road, Beijing, Guizhou Xijiu store. According to IC photo
5% of the shares are assigned to Maotai Group, and the industry believes that Xijiu "de-Maotai"
According to the Tianyancha APP, on June 10 this year, Maotai Finance Company underwent an industrial and commercial change.
Before the change, Xijiu held a 5% stake in Moutai Finance Company, and China Kweichow Moutai Distillery (Group) Co., Ltd. held 35%; after the change, the equity previously held by Xijiu has been "added" to the Moutai Group , the latter's shareholding increased to 40%. So far, among the shareholders and promoters of Maotai Finance Company, Xijiu has no connection.
This industrial and commercial change has also been confirmed on the official website of the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System.
Moutai Finance Company has no sign of Xijiu
The Red Star Capital Bureau checked and found that as early as January 20 this year, the Guizhou Banking and Insurance Regulatory Bureau approved the above changes. The approval information shows that it is agreed that Xijiu will transfer his 5% stake in Moutai Finance Company to Moutai Group.
According to the Tianyancha APP, since 2019, Xijiu has held a 5% stake in Moutai Finance Company.
For this industrial and commercial change, the Red Star Capital Bureau called Kweichow Moutai's board secretary office, but no one answered. A staff member of Xijiu told the Red Star Capital Bureau, "We don't know."
An industry insider pointed out to the Red Star Capital Bureau that this allocation means a sign of Xijiu's "de-Moutaiization".
According to public information, Xijiu was founded in 1952 and became famous in the 1990s, which is related to the ability of Chen Xingguo, the former head of Xijiu. Chen Xingguo entered the factory in 1969 and has been the director of Xijiu Winery since 1982. From 1983 to 1993, Xijiu's revenue reached 250 million yuan, and its scale was already comparable to that of Kweichow Moutai (600519.SH) and Wuliangye (000858.SZ) at that time. )quite.
However, due to mistakes in decision-making, Xijiu was once heavily in debt and was on the verge of bankruptcy, and was later acquired by Maotai Group.
After Xijiu was acquired, it took advantage of the strong brand endorsement of Moutai Group and quickly embarked on the fast track of development.
According to data released by the media, compared with the sales of 1.556 billion yuan in 2015, the sales of Xijiu in 2020 will reach 10.3 billion yuan, which is 6.62 times that of that year. Xijiu has also grown from a regional brand to a national brand. The company's brand value has reached 65.612 billion yuan, ranking among the top eight liquor brands in China and the second largest Maotai-flavor liquor brand in China.
Just a few days ago, Xijiu announced that the annual sales of this year and the previous year had exceeded the 10 billion mark.
Xijiu's sales in the first half of this year have exceeded the 10 billion mark
The road to listing is quite bumpy, and peer competition has become a "stumbling block"
With the rapid development of Xijiu, there are also rumors of its multiple listings.
In 2012, it was reported that Xijiu planned to land on the Hong Kong stock market in February 2013. However, due to the "three public" consumption restrictions and the liquor plasticizer incident at that time, the listing of Xijiu was lost.
In 2014, Guizhou State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission proposed that it should strive to be listed before the end of 2014 on the basis of maintaining Maotai Group's controlling position in Xijiu and introducing COFCO as a strategic investor. However, in January 2019, COFCO and other shareholders withdrew, and Moutai Group once again held 100% of Xijiu’s equity.
In 2017, Moutai Group proposed that Xijiu would be listed in 2020. However, the plan was forced to terminate in October 2019 due to competition issues.
On October 28, 2019, Zhong Fangda, assistant to the general manager of Moutai Group and chairman of Xijiu Company, made it clear: "Due to the relevant regulations of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, which involve horizontal competition, the same group cannot have two listed companies, and Xijiu plans to go public. termination."
Despite this, Xijiu's IPO plans are still rumored from time to time.
In December last year, it was rumored that Xijiu would be separated from Moutai Group and planned to be renamed Guizhou Xijiu Holding Group Co., Ltd., and plans to go public independently in the future. However, the rumor was quickly refuted by Xijiu. A staff member of Xijiu responded to the Red Star Capital Bureau at the time, "The above news is not true."
Although the road to listing Xijiu is quite bumpy, it is still generally optimistic in the industry.
Zhang Haoran, secretary general of the Shimaijia Wine Research Institute, said that Xijiu already has a good market foundation and brand foundation. Cheng Wansong, secretary-general of the Beijing Liquor Circulation Industry Association, believes that Xijiu has been managing the company in strict accordance with the relevant requirements of listed companies. If it is listed, it will become a very high-quality investment target. Liquor industry analyst Cai Xuefei pointed out that local government departments in Guizhou have repeatedly expressed their support for the listing of Xijiu, which can strengthen the sauce wine sector in Guizhou and promote local economic development.
However, from the perspective of the above-mentioned industry insiders, the biggest problem facing Xijiu's listing is still horizontal competition.
"The problem of competition between Moutai and Xijiu has seriously affected the interests of Maotai's small and medium shareholders, and also seriously affected the listing process of Xijiu." Moutai shareholders "900 yuan for Maotai is really not high" told the Red Star Capital Bureau, although it has reported to the state The Bureau of Letters and Calls complained, but Moutai Group has never acknowledged the existence of horizontal competition, "If Moutai Group still controls Xijiu, it is impossible for Xijiu to go public; as long as Moutai Group does not give up holding Xijiu, the problem of horizontal competition will always exist and become more and more sharp."
Xiao Zhuqing, a liquor marketing expert, revealed to the Red Star Capital Bureau that Xijiu had received listing guidance from CITIC Securities (600030.SH), and in the process of striving for an independent listing, horizontal competition was an insurmountable obstacle.
In Xiao Zhuqing's view, the best way to solve the competition in the industry may be to spin off Xijiu from the Moutai Group, or Xijiu will take the initiative to "de-Maotai" and let another state-owned enterprise in Guizhou province control Xijiu. "This will not only clear the obstacles to the competition between Xijiu and Moutai Group, but also achieve listing as soon as possible."
