Not the Founder Stepping Down, But the Professional Upgrade of Geely's Listed Company

August 17, Geely Automobile Holdings Limited (0175.HK) released its 2026 interim results.Total revenue for the first half reached 173.6 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15%, setting a new all-time record. Core attributable net profit reached 9.68 billion yuan, surging 46% year-on-year, with growth outpacing revenue growth; core attributable net profit margin at 5.6%. Amidst a continuous industry price war and profit pressure for most automakers, nearly 10 billion yuan in core profit has attracted market attention.

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On the same day, Geely Automobile Holdings Limited announced a management adjustment that attracted industry attention: Founder Li Shufu resigned as Chairman and Executive Director of Geely Automobile Holdings Limited, to be succeeded by An Conghui, who has worked in the Geely system for thirty years. The dual news of performance and personnel changes pushed Geely Automobile's stock price up by more than 5% in the afternoon.

Current Vice Chairman of the Board Gui Shengyue characterized this adjustment at the results meeting as:“This significant personnel change is not a simple replacement, but a strategic-level organizational evolution declaration of Geely Automobile.” This marks that Geely Automobile has moved from the "founder-driven" startup and development phases to the maturity phase driven by "institutions and teams".

Volume, Price, and Profit All Rise Together

In the first half of 2026, the "price for volume" strategy remained the main theme in the Chinese automotive market, yet Geely Automobile achieved simultaneous growth in volume, price, and profit.

The financial report shows,Geely Automobile's total sales volume in the first half exceeded 1.42 million units, setting a new high for the same period. Core attributable net profit per vehicle reached 6,806 yuan, a 45% year-on-year increase -- implying approximately 4,700 yuan for the same period last year, selling one car this year earns about 2,100 yuan more than last year. Revenue per vehicle increased by 16% year-on-year to 112,000 yuan.

The direct reason for profit improvement is the optimization of the product structure. Zeekr brand sales reached 178,000 units in the first half, accounting for only 12.5% of total sales, but contributing 31.7% of revenue, with an average transaction price of about 350,000 yuan. Galaxy secured the mainstream new energy basic market with nearly 520,000 units, China Star exceeded 580,000 units, retaining the sales crown among Chinese brand fuel passenger cars. High-end upward, mainstream stability, fuel cash flow -- After two years of "One Geely" strategic integration, the four brands have for the first time clearly assumed their respective positions.

At the same time, expenses did not expand with the scale. Administrative expense ratio decreased by 0.2 percentage points year-on-year to 1.7%, R&D investment ratio decreased by 0.3 percentage points to 5.2%, selling expense ratio remained flat compared to last year despite major expansion overseas. Absolute value of R&D investment grew by 8% to 9.06 billion yuan. Gross margin for the first half improved to 17.9%.

Gui Shengyue gave a progressive judgment at the results meeting: this financial report is "expected" -- Geely's sales and profit are likely to set new records in the coming years; also "eye-catching" -- the industry average profit margin is only 1.6%, while Geely's net profit margin reaches 5.6%; but "not stunning" -- domestic total car sales declined by double digits year-on-year, and chip and bulk raw material prices surged. He also stated: "I believe that in the near future, stunning financial reports will appear."

21 Years Listed, Dividends Far Exceed Financing

While profits grew, Geely Automobile continued to increase shareholder returns. Cumulative share repurchases totaled 1.885 billion HKD in the first half, on July 30, implemented a dividend of 0.5 HKD per share, a 51.5% year-on-year increase, with total dividends reaching 5.39 billion HKD. This marks the fifth consecutive year Geely Automobile's core profit payout ratio exceeds 30%.

Li Shufu, Chairman of Geely Holding Group and Lifetime Honorary Chairman of Geely Automobile Holdings Limited, disclosed a set of comparative data at the interim results press conference: when Geely Automobile stock was listed on the HKEX on May 19, 2005, the share price was 0.4 HKD, market cap 1.6 billion HKD; by August 12, 2026, share price 18.06 HKD, market cap 194.8 billion HKD. Annual dividends grew from 40 million HKD in 2005 to 5.4 billion HKD in 2025. "The amount raised by the company from the capital market is far less than the amount distributed to shareholders as dividends. We insist on annual dividends to reward shareholders," Li Shufu said. "We basically keep our promises, honoring them with integrity and fulfilling them with capability."

As of the end of June, Geely Automobile's cash reserves reached 69.56 billion yuan, at a historical high.

Deepening "One Geely"

After Li Shufu resigned, he was appointed as Lifetime Honorary Chairman. His evaluation words for his successor, Geely Automobile Holdings Limited Board Chairman An Conghui, were rare -- "Talented and virtuous, excellent in character and study, firm in ambition, super strong willpower". He specifically emphasized:An Conghui is an outstanding professional talent cultivated within the Geely system.”

Public data shows An Conghui joined Geely Holding Group in 1996, starting his career as an auditor. The next thirty years' resume covered almost every key node of Geely Automobile's industrial expansion: from auditor to chief engineering officer, from general manager to group president, led the CVVT engine project, participated in Volvo acquisition and integration, and single-handedly created Lynk & Co. In 2021, he volunteered to step down as CEO of Geely Automobile Group and started building the Zeekr brand from scratch -- less than three years to drive Zeekr to the NYSE. In early 2026, he served as CEO of Geely Holding Group.

This adjustment was not a simple "up-down" replacement, but a precise adjustment involving four people. Li Shufu resigned as Chairman and Executive Director of Geely Automobile Holdings Limited, continuing to serve as Chairman of Geely Holding Group. An Conghui succeeded as Chairman of Geely Automobile Holdings Limited. Li Donghui resigned as Vice Chairman of the Board, continuing as Executive Director. Gui Shengyue resigned as Managing Director, switched to Vice Chairman of the Board, continuing as Executive Director. Gan Jiayue was appointed Managing Director, responsible for daily operations.

Everyone moved one step, sorting out the three-level governance structure of Board, Strategic Layer, and Executive Layer at once. Gui Shengyue further explained at the results meeting: Geely Automobile will be the only listed company within the Geely system under Chairman An Conghui. This means Geely will continue to implement the "Taizhou Declaration", concentrating all high-quality resources of the group to make the listed company larger, more substantial, and stronger.

Li Shufu elaborated on Geely's core values in the video: "User First, Strategy Leading, Core Vitality Guarantee". He particularly explained: "Core Vitality is the vitality of the enterprise, the morale of employees, we must keep employees' hearts together with the enterprise." Geely established a Talent Group specifically, initiating the "Cross-Era Leap Talent Training Plan" and "Cross-Era Practical Professional Ability Training Plan" in 2026. From the Cornerstone Plan to the Cross-Era Leap Plan, Geely is building a full-chain training system from high school graduates to executives.

Overseas Acceleration and Technical Turnaround

The overseas market has become the second growth curve. Overseas sales in the first half exceeded 474,000 units, already surpassing the total export volume of 2025, a 158% year-on-year increase. Overseas sales exceeded 100,000 units consecutively in June and July, ranking third among Chinese automakers in overseas sales. Based on this, Geely Automobile raised the annual overseas sales target from 640,000 units to 920,000 units, aiming to achieve 1 million units in annual sales.

An Conghui revealed at the results meeting that Geely established the long-term strategy of "selling two-thirds of cars overseas" from the beginning of its establishment. Specifically implemented as the "123456" framework -- creating 1 overseas Geely system, Europe 600k level, ASEAN 500k level, Latin America & Africa 400k level, Eastern Europe 300k level, Middle East & Asia 200k level, total 2 million units plan. Overseas local production capacity layout was disclosed for the first time systematically: Volvo European factory will undertake luxury car production within the Geely system, starting production in 2028; Proton Malaysia factory increased from 200,000 units to 500,000 units; Ford Spain factory 500,000 units capacity; Renault Brazil project 300,000 units capacity; Renault South Korea factory is already in production.

In the fuel vehicle field, Gan Jiayue revealed a major strategic shift: "In the future, we will no longer develop traditional fuel vehicles, but turn all fuel vehicles to i-HEV. This is a major decision made by the management team and product strategy committee." i-HEV Smart Hybrid technology fuel consumption is 12% lower than the Japanese hybrid benchmark, with 0-100 km/h acceleration 1 second faster. In the second half, Monjaro, Preface, Boyue L and other i-HEV models will be launched.

From the start of 2026 to date, Geely Automobile is the only Chinese passenger car stock with positive stock price growth among A-shares and H-shares. Dozens of domestic and foreign investment banks including Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, etc., have given ratings such as "Overweight" and "Buy".

Against the backdrop of an intense industry price war and sustained pressure on the average profit margin of China's auto industry, this performance report of nearly 1 billion yuan in core profit provides the strongest confidence for this handover brewing for years. From An Conghui joining Geely in 1996 to him succeeding as Chairman of Geely Automobile Holdings Limited in 2026, it has been exactly thirty years. Li Shufu continues to helm the overall situation at the Geely Holding Group level, while An Conghui and his professional manager team operate the listed company, with clear powers and responsibilities, each sticking to their position. Li Shufu said at the interim results press conference: "The amount raised by the company from the capital market is far less than the amount distributed to shareholders as dividends. We insist on annual dividends to reward shareholders. We basically keep our promises, honoring them with integrity and fulfilling them with capability."