Recently, Unitree (688836.SH) disclosed its first financial report after listing on the SSE STAR Market. In the first three quarters of this year, both the company's revenue and net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company grew significantly, but the net profit excluding non-recurring items declined by 18.78% year-on-year. As sales volume expanded, the company saw a surge in inventory and its operating cash flow was "halved." The third quarter performance was particularly under pressure, with single-quarter profit dropping nearly 50% quarter-on-quarter and operating cash flow turning negative year-on-year.
Securities Star noted that Unitree's gross margin in the first three quarters contracted by 5.73 percentage points year-on-year to 54.02%. Meanwhile, the company is intensifying its investment in embodied AI large models while simultaneously launching high-cost brand marketing campaigns, causing R&D and selling expenses to double, with combined expenditures reaching CNY 493 million. On its first day of trading on August 19, Unitree's stock price briefly rose to CNY 1,100 per share before rapidly retreating. Although the stock has rebounded recently, the latest price remains approximately 40% below its peak.
01、Net Profit Excluding Non-Recurring Items Down Nearly 20%, Inventory Surges
In the first three quarters of this year, Unitree achieved revenue of CNY 1.817 billion, a year-on-year increase of 55.71%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company reached CNY 387 million, a substantial year-on-year increase of 270.54%. The significant growth in net profit was primarily driven by increased gross profit from revenue growth and the one-time recognition of a large amount of share-based payment expenses in the previous year. In 2025, Unitree's share-based payment expenses were approximately CNY 349 million, all of which were included in current management expenses as non-recurring gains or losses. Therefore, the high growth in net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company in the first three quarters of this year is based on the low base effect from the same period last year, rather than a leap in the profitability of the core business. Excluding the impact of non-recurring gains and losses, Unitree's net profit excluding non-recurring items was CNY 349 million, a year-on-year decline of 18.78%.
Looking specifically at the third quarter, Unitree achieved revenue of CNY 665 million, a significant year-on-year increase of 69.93%; net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company was CNY 113 million, a year-on-year decrease of 17.37%; net profit excluding non-recurring items was CNY 105 million, a year-on-year decline of 17.42%. Quarter-on-quarter, the company's net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company and net profit excluding non-recurring items fell by 49.69% and 48.43% respectively, both nearly "halved."
Unitree attributes its revenue growth to continuous product innovation and business expansion, constantly enriching its product matrix. From 2023 to 2025, Unitree's sales of quadruped robots increased from 3,121 units to 23,037 units, while humanoid robot sales correspondingly grew from 5 units to 5,215 units. As sales volume reaches higher levels, resource investments in supply chain procurement, inventory stocking, and market channel construction need to be scaled up simultaneously.
As of the end of the third quarter of this year, Unitree's inventory scale reached CNY 1.019 billion, a sharp year-on-year increase of 266.63%, nearly five times the revenue growth rate for the same period. Over the long term, from 2023 to 2025, the book value of the company's inventory was CNY 78.9577 million, CNY 141 million, and CNY 368 million respectively, with work-in-progress and raw materials accounting for an absolute majority in previous years' inventory structure. Unitree frankly admitted that as its sales scale rapidly expands, it has synchronously increased raw material procurement and production scale to meet product sales demand.
Amid accelerating stocking rhythms, Unitree's inventory operational efficiency has declined slightly. In the first three quarters of this year, the company's inventory turnover rate was 1.2, slowing down from 2.63 at the end of 2025.
The large inventory scale occupies significant capital, causing a sudden rise in Unitree's cash flow pressure. In the first three quarters of this year, the net cash flow from operating activities decreased by54.69% year-on-year to CNY 194 million, compared to CNY 428 million in the same period last year. This was mainly due to increases in cash paid for goods purchased and services received, cash paid to and on behalf of employees, as well as sales and R&D expenses, driven by revenue growth. Specifically, cash paid for goods purchased and services received increased by 116.99% year-on-year to CNY 1.352 billion.
Securities Star noted that Unitree's net cash flow from operating activities in the third quarter was negative CNY 37.838 million, whereas it was as high as CNY 197 million in the second quarter, indicating a worsening single-quarter cash flow performance.
02、Gross Margin Declines, Stock Price Retraces Nearly 40% from Peak
In the first three quarters of this year, Unitree's comprehensive gross margin dropped to 54.02%, a reduction of approximately 5.73 percentage points from 59.75% in the same period last year. With gross margins under pressure, the significant increase in R&D and selling expenses has become the most prominent source of pressure on Unitree's profit side.
In the first three quarters of this year, Unitree's R&D expenses amounted to CNY 263 million, a year-on-year increase of 191.48%, which is about 1.8 times the full-year level of 2025. Since 2023, the company's R&D expenses have been rising rapidly at double-digit growth rates or higher.
It is understood that Unitree's past R&D focus was primarily on body structure and motion control (i.e., the "cerebellum"). Leveraging this capability, its humanoid robots can perform high-dynamic actions such as backflips and formation dancing. However, the company's shortcomings are equally obvious, with relatively limited achievements in embodied AI large models (i.e., the "brain").
This has become the core driver behind the significant expansion of Unitree's R&D investment during this period. In the first three quarters of this year, Unitree continued to increase R&D investment in the field of embodied intelligence, particularly with substantial growth in model development and computing power investment related to embodied AI large models, as well as expanding the R&D team and continuing new product development.
On October 22, Unitree launched the "YuChuang Plan," recruiting entrepreneurs for embodied intelligence ecosystem cooperation, with a plan to incubate over 200 ecosystem enterprises in the next five years. The company is also betting on Physical AI, currently pre-researching the Physical AI Robot Self-Evolution V1.0 Large Model. These moves indicate that Unitree is attempting to catch up on full-stack capabilities in embodied intelligence, moving away from its "lopsided" state.
While R&D investment soared, Unitree's selling expenses grew even faster. The company's selling expenses in the first three quarters increased by 202.45% year-on-year to CNY 230 million, with the selling expense ratio rising from 6.51% in the same period last year to 12.65%. The company previously mentioned in its prospectus that, in response to public attention on technological progress in the domestic humanoid robot industry over the past year and to consolidate brand market influence, it leveraged platforms such as the 2026 CCTV Spring Festival Gala for brand promotion, resulting in a significant increase in selling expenses.
Securities Star noted that with the accelerated advancement of global technology companies and active layouts by startups and cross-industry entrants, competition in the embodied intelligence industry is further intensifying. According to data from third-party agency SAG, in the first half of this year, AgiBot's humanoid robot shipment volume surpassed Unitree, topping the industry shipment rankings.
As the leading enterprise to list on the SSE STAR Market and secure large amounts of capital from the secondary market, Unitree must face more rigorous scrutiny. Since listing on August 19, the company's stock price has fluctuated significantly under the alternating influence of market sentiment and industry news. On the first day of trading, the intraday stock price surged to CNY 1,100 per share before rapidly falling back, hitting a low of CNY 404.03 per share on October 15, followed by a rebound since October 16. As of the close on November 2, the company's stock price stood at CNY 662.17 per share, up 2.34%, still retracing approximately 40% from its highest point since listing.
(This article was first published by Securities Star, Author | Lu Wenyan)