Analysis of business results & financial statements · Quý 1/2026
▲ Slightly positive
Trailing net profit reached 81.0bn, rose 22.5bn compared with the same period last year. Key positives came from lower administrative expenses. Offsetting pressure came mainly from lower gross profit, weaker other profit, higher finance costs, and higher tax. Detailed impact is shown below:
See what is changing ↓- P/E
- 6.24x
- P/B
- 0.49x
- EPS
- 1,891
- BVPS
- 24,244
- ROE
- 7.6%
- ROA
- 2.9%
- Market price
- 11,800 16 Oct 2026
The current picture
What Is Changing
On a TTM 2026Q1 basis, CST has not moved the needle on revenue, but profitability has edged up slightly — profit is at an all-time high. What remains unclear is whether this improvement can widen without revenue momentum to back it.
Profit bridge
Vs last year · TTM
- Administrative expenses
- Gross profit
- Other profit
- Finance costs
- Tax
Across periods
A single data point, or a trajectory?
Latest eight quarters · Quý 1/2026
| Metric | Q1'26 | Q4'25 | Q3'25 | Q2'25 | Q1'25 | Q4'24 | Q3'24 | Q2'24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 2,312.4 | 1,870.7 | 1,987.5 | 2,320.3 | 2,360.5 | 2,100.1 | 1,782.5 | 2,618.6 |
| LNST | 10.6 | 59.8 | -4.9 | 15.6 | 12.7 | 6.7 | -42.8 | 81.9 |
| Net margin | 0.46% | 3.19% | -0.25% | 0.67% | 0.54% | 0.32% | -2.40% | 3.13% |
Revenue
2,312bnNet income
11bnNet margin
0.46%Inside the statements
A closer look at what is happening inside the business
A company's statements are read with the questions that fit its type of business.
Is the profit sustainable?
Margins are improving and earnings quality is solid — a durable foundation for ROE.
What is driving the margin?
●Net margin stands at 0.95%, broadly flat versus the same period. Supportive factors and pressure points are offsetting one another.
Margin is nearly flat but the underlying components are moving — this is a transitional phase, more time is needed to see the real trend.
- Net Margin
- 0.95% +0.3pp
- Gross Margin
- 3.79% −0.8pp
- SG&A / Revenue
- 2.38% −1.5pp
TTM YoY · 2025Q1 -> 2026Q1
Is capital being used efficiently?
Capital is being used more efficiently — ROIC rose and cash cycle shortened to 44.2 days.
Is capital being deployed efficiently?
▲▲ROIC expanded to 5.11%, rising 3.0pp. That translates to 5.11 in after-tax operating profit for every 100 units of operating capital. The main driver is NOPAT margin rose 0.5pp, with capital turnover fell 0.18x; with invested capital holding roughly steady.
NOPAT margin led the improvement, but the ROIC level has not yet cleared typical cost of capital — margin needs to hold in coming periods rather than being a one-period rebound.
Balance Sheet
●ROIC is improving — the asset structure below shows how capital is being allocated. Capital structure is conservative with low leverage — liabilities at 1.43x equity, net debt at 0.44x equity.
Inventory ended the period at 692.7bn, roughly 27.8% of total assets.
Over the last 12 months, working capital absorbed 66.1bn of cash, mainly because of higher inventories. Part of that drag was offset by lower receivables and higher payables.
Working Capital Efficiency
▲Working capital is being managed more efficiently, supporting overall capital efficiency. Cash conversion cycle improved by 11.2 days versus the same period last year. The main moves came from DIO rose 10.1 days, DSO fell 19.4 days, and DPO rose 1.9 days.
Improvement comes mainly from faster receivables collection — reflects the quality of receivables management.
DIO increased by +10.1 days, suggesting more capital is being tied up in inventories.
DuPont
What drives ROE?
ROE rose from 5.1% to 7.6% — all three components improved, with net margin contributing the most.
Is financial risk significant?
Financial risk is low — leverage is safe, both CFO and FCF are positive.
Leverage & Liquidity
●Leverage is balanced for now, with net debt / equity at 0.44x and interest coverage at 3.03x.
At present, cash equals 1.0% of debt and total debt stands at 379.5bn.
Cash / debt stands at 1.0%, leaving limited liquidity buffer to monitor.
- Net Debt / Equity
- 0.44x +0.03x
- Interest Coverage
- 3.03x +1.33x
- Cash / Debt
- 1.0% +0.6pp
- Short-term Debt / Total Debt
- None
TTM YoY · 2025Q1 -> 2026Q1
Cash Flow
▲▲With safe leverage noted above, cash flow below shows the self-funding capacity. Operating cash flow reached 169.9bn in 2025, against investing cash flow of -355.7bn.
Post-investment cash flow was negative +185.8bn. Financing cash flow was positive +187.0bn.
CFO / net income was 5,40 lần.
After spending +338.7bn on fixed-asset investment, the business generated trailing free cash flow of +98.8bn.
In summary
Research synthesis
What this reporting period is showing
The business is heading the right way, but the current picture is still at partial confirmation — not yet a fully clean case. The positive points have clearly improved, showing the operating base is better than before. The brighter spot is earnings conversion is confirmed, with CFO/NI at 5.40x. The main risk still sits in leverage and liquidity, with interest coverage at 3.03x.
- Improvement: earnings conversion looks more confirmed, with CFO / net income at 5.40x.
- Key risk: leverage and liquidity remain a pressure point, with net debt / equity at 0.44x and a thin cash buffer.
What to verify next
Questions for the next period
Ability to stabilize revenue after a −4,2% YoY decline.
Ability to hold margins around the current 0.95% level.
Cash-flow quality, with operating cash flow currently at 169.9bn in 2025.
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