Citi Initiates Meitu (1357.HK) at Buy/High Risk – Built for the AI Era (UBS Foreign Research)
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Citi has initiated coverage of Meitu Corporation (1357.HK) with a Buy rating tempered by a High Risk designation, under the thesis 'Built for the AI Era.' The initiation is supported by a broad evidentiary base presented in chart form. Exhibits track first-half 2026 app gross billings by market excluding mainland China, and Meitu's monthly active users across Chinese city tiers, illustrating the geographic distribution of the domestic user base. Further charts break down Meitu app revenue worldwide, covering both iOS and Android, in US dollars by market, alongside total revenue and overseas revenue in RMB millions, which together frame the company's expanding international footprint. A separate exhibit on administrative expenses highlights the cost side of the model, while a closing timeline charts the key milestones and events that have shaped Meitu's evolution. Overall, the package positions Meitu as an image-editing and AI-driven company whose growth story leans on overseas monetization and artificial-intelligence product adoption, while the High Risk flag acknowledges elevated uncertainty around execution. The charts give investors the quantitative anchors of users, billings, revenue splits and expenses needed to track that thesis.
Key exhibits
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