NewTimeSpace | Stock Slumps Despite Growth: Auntea Jenny’s (02589.HK) Market Cap Falls Below HK$10 Billion

The year 2025 was a year of explosive listings for tea beverage companies, with Mixue Bingcheng, Guming, and Chabaidao all entering the market.

On May 8, 2025, the "new-style tea" sector on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) welcomed Auntea Jenny (02589.HK). After more than half a year in the capital market, Auntea Jenny has lost the luster it enjoyed during its initial listing.

Since its listing, Auntea Jenny’s stock price has trended downward. As of the latest close, its total market capitalization has fallen below the HK$10 billion threshold, standing at only HK$9.105 billion.

Market Cap Falls Below 10 Billion, Down Over 20% from Offer Price

Public records show that Auntea Jenny is a freshly made beverage company. In 2013, the company opened its first store in Shanghai’s People’s Square, featuring "fresh-boiled grain-based tea" as its core selling point. By integrating grains such as purple rice, red beans, and oats into its drinks, the brand successfully bypassed the homogenized competition of the time. Leveraging its health-conscious positioning and mid-range pricing, it quickly established a foothold in Shanghai. After a decade of development, according to a China Insights Industry Consultancy (CIC) report, Auntea Jenny operated the fifth and fourth largest freshly made tea networks in China as of 2022 and 2023, respectively.

NewTimeSpace has learned that in the global offering of its Hong Kong IPO, Auntea Jenny set its price at the upper limit of HK$113.12 per share. The public offering tranche was oversubscribed by 3,616.83 times, while the international tranche was oversubscribed by 2.57 times. With subscription orders exceeding HK$94 billion, it was a certified "hot stock" for investors.

With the favor of numerous investors, Auntea Jenny debuted on the Hong Kong market and was highly sought after by capital on its first day. The stock surged 68.49% at the open to HK$190.60, with its market cap briefly exceeding HK$200 billion. However, this high point was not sustained; after the opening, the price trended lower and ended the day with a 40.29% gain.

Subsequently, Auntea Jenny’s stock fell for two consecutive days and then entered a volatile trend. From August 2025 onward, the stock price continued its downward fluctuation. As of the latest close, Auntea Jenny’s total market capitalization has officially dipped below the HK$10 billion mark.

As of the close on January 30, 2026, Auntea Jenny was quoted at HK$86.50 per share, down 3.03% for the day, with a market cap of HK$9.105 billion. The company’s stock price has fallen by 22.98% from its original offer price.

Slow Progress on 10,000-Store Plan, Milestone Reached in Late 2025

NewTimeSpace has learned that as early as the beginning of 2023, Auntea Jenny founder Shan Weijun proposed the "10,000-store plan," aiming for a total of 10,000 contracted stores.

Two years have now passed, and during the first half of 2025, Auntea Jenny was still hovering just below that milestone.

Currently, the new-style tea industry is characterized by fierce competition, where scale is often viewed as the primary measure of success. Since 2025, Auntea Jenny has relaxed its franchising policies to accelerate expansion, specifically launching a limited-time subsidy of up to RMB 189,800 per store prior to listing to attract franchisees. However, this did not result in the expected explosion of scale; in the first half of the year, Auntea Jenny saw a net increase of only 260 stores, a significant slowdown in growth.

According to Auntea Jenny’s 1H 2025 report disclosed after its listing, the company achieved revenue of RMB 1.818 billion, a year-on-year increase of 9.7%, and a net profit of RMB 203 million, a year-on-year increase of 20.9%. Its total store count reached 9,436, still one step away from the 10,000-store mark.

In comparison with its peers, Guming added 1,265 stores in the first half of 2025, reaching a total of 11,179 by the end of the period, widening its lead over Auntea Jenny to 1,743 stores. Mixue Group added 6,535 stores in the first half of 2025, reaching a global total of 53,014 by the end of the period.

Recently, data from multiple third-party brand monitoring platforms indicated that Auntea Jenny’s nationwide store count has finally surpassed 10,000. Jihai Brand Monitoring disclosed that as of December 5, Auntea Jenny’s total nationwide stores reached 10,969, covering 356 cities, making it the third brand in China’s new-style tea industry to reach the 10,000-store milestone.

GMV Declines, Store Closures Increase Significantly

By the end of 2025, although Auntea Jenny’s stores exceeded 10,000, the number of new store openings decreased while the number of closures increased during the reporting period.

Auntea Jenny’s 1H 2025 report shows that while the company opened 905 new franchised stores, it closed 645. In comparison, from 2022 to 2024, the company opened 1,926, 2,882, and 2,383 new franchised stores, while closing 393, 370, and 987 stores, respectively.

Notably, from 2024 onward, the number of closures for Auntea Jenny has grown significantly. Behind these closures lies a decline in the average daily Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV) per store.

Data shows that from 2022 to 2024, the average daily GMV per store for Auntea Jenny was RMB 4,109, RMB 4,270, and RMB 3,753, respectively, with a clear decline in 2024.

Specifically, the average daily GMV for stores open for less than one year was RMB 4,016, RMB 3,933, and RMB 3,239; for stores open for one to two years, it was RMB 4,267, RMB 4,284, and RMB 3,621; and for stores open for two to three years, the figure dropped from RMB 4,537 in 2023 to RMB 3,896 in 2024.

However, Auntea Jenny did not disclose these figures in its 1H 2025 report, leaving the latest GMV situation unknown. Furthermore, recent media reports cite several Auntea Jenny franchisees claiming that since the IPO, the company has engaged in forced inventory loading, and as promotions have become more aggressive, actual net revenue has accounted for only 60% or less of total turnover.

In 2024, Auntea Jenny’s revenue was RMB 3.285 billion with a gross margin of 31.3%, but its net profit margin was only 10%, which is relatively low for the industry. Approximately 96.5% of its revenue came from franchised stores. In the first half of 2025, its profit situation improved, with a gross margin of 31.4% and a net margin of 11.16%.

Recently, Auntea Jenny issued a performance forecast stating that the company expects to achieve a full-year net profit of RMB 495 million to 525 million for 2025, a year-on-year increase of 50% to 60%; its adjusted net profit is expected to be RMB 560 million to 590 million, a year-on-year increase of 34% to 41%.

This positive performance news caused Auntea Jenny’s stock price to rise by nearly 10% on that day, reaching HK$97.95. However, this price level was not maintained for long and has now fallen back below HK$90.

NewTimeSpace Disclaimer: All content herein is the original work of NewTimeSpace. Any reproduction, reprinting, or use of this content in any other manner must clearly indicate the source as "NewTimeSpace". NewTimeSpace and its authorized third-party information providers strive to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data, but do not guarantee the absolute correctness thereof. This content is for reference only and does not constitute any investment advice. All transaction risks shall be borne by the user.