IPO outlook | Topstar sprints “A+H”: transformation, quality improvement and implementation, accounts receivable risk needs to be mitigated

With the continuous increase in the penetration rate of industrial automation and the accelerated implementation of the humanoid robot industry, the domestic high-end equipment circuit ushered in a rapid growth cycle. Domestic manufacturers accelerated their entry into the capital market and leveraged the capital market to enable technological iteration and global layout.

The Zhitong Finance App learned that according to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's disclosure on July 20, Guangdong Topstar Technology Co., Ltd. (300607.SZ) submitted a listing application to the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Huatai International is its sole sponsor. The company submitted a listing application to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in January 2026. According to the prospectus, the funds raised this time are mainly intended to be used for technology research and development, expansion of sales and service networks, strategic mergers and acquisitions, and supplementary working capital.

The 10th largest supplier of industrial robot solutions in mainland China

According to the prospectus, Topstar is an industrial robot company established in 2007. It operates an integrated and independently developed business, covering core robot components, robot bodies and automation systems.

The company's development began with a plastic injection molding support track, and initially mainly engaged in injection molding production auxiliary machines; in 2011, it entered the rectangular coordinate robot circuit to break the technology monopoly of overseas brands with self-developed products; and launched multi-joint robot research and development in 2015. In 2021, the company acquired EVM's controlling interest and expanded its product portfolio to metal processing through high-end CNC machine tools; starting in 2023, the company reduced its non-injection mechatronic engineering business, and resources continued to be concentrated on the main industrial robot business. From 2024 to 2026, the company successively launched robotic products such as humanoid robots and four-legged robots for injection molding scenes.

According to Frost & Sullivan data, in terms of revenue from injection molding auxiliary machines in 2025, Topstar ranked first in mainland China. The company ranked ninth among domestic manufacturers in mainland China in terms of revenue from 5-axis linkage CNC machine tools in 2025. In terms of revenue from industrial robot solutions in 2025, the company ranked 10th among all participants in mainland China and ranked fourth among domestic suppliers in the mainland China industrial robot solutions market, with a market share of 0.7%.

On the product side, the company has formed a product matrix for the collaborative development of industrial robots, CNC machine tools, and injection molding equipment. The products are widely used in consumer electronics, automobiles, new energy, aerospace and other fields. According to Frost & Sullivan data, in 2024, the company's customers will basically cover the top five consumer electronics manufacturers in mainland China. In the first quarter of 2026, the company's revenue from industrial robots and automation application systems business reached 59.9%, and the injection molding equipment business accounted for 20.4% of revenue.

In terms of global layout, the company continues to promote overseas market penetration, focusing on Southeast Asian manufacturing agglomeration areas such as Vietnam and Indonesia. The core overseas products focus on high-value-added industrial robots, automation systems and injection molding equipment. According to prospectus data, in 2023, 2024, 2025, and the three months ending March 31, 2026, the company's overseas sales revenue accounted for 11.0%, 20.9%, 26.3% and 26.6% of total revenue, respectively.

Business transformation results revealed, profitability restored

In terms of performance, in the first quarter of 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026, Topstar's revenue was approximately RMB 4.553 billion (RMB, same below), RMB 2,872 million, RMB 2.51 billion, and RMB 538 million respectively; net profit to mother for the same period was approximately RMB 106 million, -239 million yuan, RMB 73.41 million, and RMB 42.845 million, respectively.

The Zhitong Finance App noticed that since 2023, Topstar has gradually reduced its low-margin non-injection molding mechanical and electrical engineering business, and the company's profitability has been restored. The company's gross sales margin increased from a low of 14.6% in 2024 to 28.3% in 2025, and further increased to 32.5% in the first quarter of 2026. In the first quarter of 2026, the gross margins of the industrial robot and automation application systems business and the injection molding equipment business were 33.5% and 35.9%, respectively.

Notably, Topstar's customer concentration is on the rise. From 2023 to the first quarter of 2026, the company's share of revenue from the top five customers increased from 36.9% to 59.5%. In the first quarter of 2026, the share of revenue from the company's largest customers reached 49.1%. As of the end of March 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026, the company's trade receivables and notes receivable were $2,346 billion, $1,440 billion, $1,190 billion, and $1,209 billion respectively. Topstar stated in its prospectus that companies can generally grant customers credit terms of up to six months. On the repayment efficiency side, the average turnaround days for each trade receivable period was 180 days, 240 days, 192 days, and 202 days, respectively, which continued to put pressure on working capital consumption. From 2023 to the first quarter of 2026, the cumulative credit loss provision amount for the current portion of the company's trade receivables and notes receivable reached RMB 917 million.

The robot circuit is booming, and the A+H platform empowers global growth

In the short term, Topstar has operating pressures such as concentrated customers and long account periods, but as inefficient businesses continue to clear up and the share of the main robot business continues to increase, the company's business structure, customer structure and cash flow quality are expected to be optimized, and long-term management resilience is expected to gradually improve.

According to Frost & Sullivan data, the market size of industrial robot solutions in mainland China grew from 50.9 billion yuan in 2021 to 92.4 billion yuan in 2025, with a compound annual growth rate of 16.1%. In the future, the market size is expected to grow further to 2007 billion yuan in 2030, with a compound annual growth rate of 16.8% between 2025 and 2030.

Shipments of industrial robots in mainland China increased from 317,500 units in 2021 to 382,200 units in 2025, with a compound annual growth rate of 4.7% from 2021 to 2025. In the future, mainland China's industrial robot shipments are expected to grow further to 657,700 units in 2030, with a compound annual growth rate of 11.5% between 2025 and 2030. In 2025, shipments of light-duty, medium-duty and heavy-duty industrial robots in mainland China were 67,300 units, 259,900 units and 55,000 units respectively. The CAGR for the period from 2021 to 2025 was 1.5%, 4.6%, and 10.8%, respectively. Shipments are expected to reach 112,500 units, 455,500 units and 94,700 units respectively by 2030, with compound annual growth rates of 10.8%, 11.6%, and 11.5%, respectively, from 2025 to 2030.

In the process of increasing industry prosperity, Topstar focuses on the injection molding industry segment. Relying on years of deep industry experience, it develops special products such as humanoid robots and four-legged robots in a targeted manner to meet the intelligent needs of the entire injection molding production process, forming technical barriers and scenario advantages. On the technical side, the company insists on self-research on core components and iterates on high-end robots and five-axis CNC machine tool products; the market side grasps the wave of manufacturing going overseas, improves the overseas service network, and expands the scale of high-end equipment going overseas. The company is expected to continue to expand its business scale and enhance its profitability.

Going public in Hong Kong is a key layout for upgrading the company's strategy. At the capital level, fund-raising will continue to increase core robot technology research and development, domestic and international sales and service network expansion, and strategic mergers and acquisitions of the industrial chain, consolidate technical barriers, optimize business layout, and supplement working capital. At the capital level, the A+H dual listing platform will help the company connect with international capital markets, enhance the influence of overseas brands, provide support for global business expansion and cross-border industrial integration, and accelerate the transformation from a domestic equipment manufacturer to a global intelligent manufacturing solution service provider.

At the same time, potential risks in the company's growth process still require attention. The company's customers are concentrated in the manufacturing sector, and performance is easily disrupted by the capital expenditure cycle of the downstream industry; remaining goodwill formed by historical mergers and acquisitions still has the risk of impairment, factors such as homogenized competition in the industry, fluctuations in overseas exchange rates, etc., which may disrupt the company's phased performance. At present, the company's emerging core businesses such as humanoid robots and high-end CNC machine tools are still in the upward phase of the market, and the results of transformation and growth still need to be continuously verified.