Loading…
China's flag-carrier airline, one of the country's three dominant state-owned carriers.
China's flag-carrier airline, one of the country's three dominant state-owned carriers.
Same company as the Shanghai-listed 601111. Passenger tickets carry the group, with domestic routes larger than international. Cathay Pacific holds a stake in it and it holds one in Cathay, and the state-owned China National Aviation Holding controls it.
In one line: A Chinese United Airlines, state-owned flag carrier.
Moat: narrow (regulatory licence, brand, scale). Flag-carrier status and Beijing hub slots give preferential route access versus smaller domestic rivals.
Headquarters: Beijing, China · Founded: 1988 · Employees: 107,795
Size Air China (0753.HK) is a Hong Kong Industrials company (Airlines) with a market value of $15.4B, the 115th largest of 891 Hong Kong companies the cockpit tracks. Shares closed at HK$3.85 on 6 Nov 2026.
Performance Over six months the shares fell 26.9%, against +8.5% for the median peer and -13.4% for the Hong Kong market (cap-weighted) — 3rd lowest of 21 in its peer set.
Growth Revenue grew 10.9% over the last twelve months (peer median +11.4%); the operating margin is -4.0% (peer median 7.3%).
Valuation It trades at 1.7× enterprise value to sales against a peer median of 1.1× (7th most expensive of 21).
Price implies For today's price to make sense, revenue must grow about 12% a year for seven years (Req g). Recent delivered growth is +19%, so the hurdle is -7 pp: the price already allows for a slowdown.
Capital Return on invested capital runs 8.1 points below its cost of capital (5.8% WACC).
Next results Next results expected around 1 Apr 2027 (exchange calendar; dates can move).
| TTM | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | HK$201B | HK$186B | HK$181B | HK$156B | HK$61.5B |
| Revenue growth | — | +3% | +16% | +153% | — |
| Gross profit | -HK$493M | HK$1.89B | HK$1.73B | HK$891M | -HK$41.7B |
| EBITDA | HK$27.3B | HK$27.8B | HK$26.2B | HK$25.2B | -HK$20.4B |
| Net income | -HK$2.59B | -HK$1.94B | -HK$252M | -HK$1.15B | -HK$44.9B |
| Free cash flow | HK$9.43B | HK$21.0B | HK$8.81B | HK$425M | -HK$36.0B |
| Capital expenditure | HK$28.1B | HK$19.0B | HK$21.8B | HK$25.2B | HK$8.88B |
| Total debt | n/a | HK$254B | HK$251B | HK$258B | HK$258B |
The default views of Competitor Analysis ▸ Charts, drawn from the same data. Open them in the cockpit to change the axes, pin companies and read every value.
| Company | Market cap | 6M return | Revenue growth | Op. margin | EV / Sales | Req g |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air China 0753.HK | $15.4B | -27% | +11% | -4% | 1.7× | 11.7% |
| China Southern Airlines 1055.HK | $12.3B | -32% | +12% | 0% | 1.9× | n/a |
| China Eastern Airlines 0670.HK | $10.8B | -40% | +13% | -4% | 1.8× | 18.6% |
| Delta Air Lines DAL | $57.4B | +19% | +14% | 7% | 1.0× | 9.9% |
Peer set: Industry: the same industry and sector in any market, nearest in size. This is the same default set the interactive Competitor Analysis opens with.
| Measure | 0753.HK | Peer median | Rank in peer set |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-month return | +4.2% | +5.7% | 9th lowest of 21 |
| 6-month return | -26.9% | +8.5% | 3rd lowest of 21 |
| Distance from 52-week high | -50.4% | -16.4% | 3rd lowest of 21 |
| Revenue growth (TTM) | +10.9% | +11.4% | 11th highest of 21 |
| Operating margin | -4.0% | 7.3% | 2nd lowest of 21 |
| EV / Sales | 1.7× | 1.1× | 7th most expensive of 21 |
| Growth the price implies (Req g, 7 yrs) | 11.7% | -5.6% | 3rd most demanding of 13 |
| Growth delivered (Del g) | +18.9% | +28.8% | 3rd lowest of 13 |
| Hurdle (Req g minus delivered) | -7.2 pp | -36.4 pp | 2nd most demanding of 13 |
| ROIC minus cost of capital | -8.1 pp | +3.0 pp | lowest of 21 |
| EV / EBITDA | 12.7× | 5.2× | 3rd most expensive of 18 |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 8.4× | 1.6× | 3rd most indebted of 19 |
| Company | Market | Market cap | 6M return | Revenue growth | Op. margin | EV / Sales | Req g | Delivered g |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air China 0753.HK | Hong Kong | $15.4B | -27% | +11% | -4% | 1.7× | 11.7% | +18.9% |
| LATAM Airlines Group SA Sponsored ADR LTM | United States | $13.8B | -7% | +21% | 14% | 1.2× | -7.2% | +29.3% |
| Singapore Airlines C6L.SI | Singapore | $17.2B | +11% | +5% | 12% | 1.1× | -11.0% | +40.0% |
| China Southern Airlines 1055.HK | Hong Kong | $12.3B | -32% | +12% | 0% | 1.9× | n/a | n/a |
| Cathay Pacific Airways 0293.HK | Hong Kong | $11.7B | +19% | +20% | 11% | 1.1× | -12.4% | +20.0% |
| Deutsche Lufthansa LHA.DE | Germany | $11.4B | +7% | +8% | -1% | 0.4× | n/a | n/a |
| Southwest Airlines LUV | United States | $21.8B | +8% | +14% | 5% | 0.8× | n/a | n/a |
| China Eastern Airlines 0670.HK | Hong Kong | $10.8B | -40% | +13% | -4% | 1.8× | 18.6% | +18.1% |
| InterGlobe Aviation INDIGO.NS | India | $22.4B | +22% | +13% | 8% | 2.6× | 25.5% | +42.2% |
| Qantas Airways QAN.AX | Australia | $9.79B | +9% | +8% | 7% | 0.8× | n/a | n/a |
| Ana 9202.T | Japan | $9.77B | +24% | +17% | 8% | 0.6× | -10.0% | +28.4% |
| International Consolidated Airlines IAG.L | United Kingdom | $25.3B | +9% | +4% | 14% | 0.8× | -3.9% | +32.4% |
| Japan Airlines 9201.T | Japan | $9.08B | +34% | +10% | 8% | 0.6× | -9.7% | +33.1% |
| American Airlines AAL | United States | $8.73B | -1% | +12% | 2% | 0.6× | n/a | n/a |
| Ryanair Holdings PLC Sponsored ADR RYAAY | United States | $29.5B | +2% | +9% | 13% | 1.5× | 6.4% | +56.7% |
| KAL 003490.KS | South Korea | $7.99B | +20% | +21% | 2% | 1.1× | n/a | n/a |
| Hainan Airlines 600221.SS | China | $7.85B | -20% | +6% | -3% | 2.2× | 5.0% | +18.4% |
| Air China Cargo 001391.SZ | China | $7.12B | -21% | +10% | 9% | 1.8× | n/a | n/a |
| Eva Airways 2618.TW | Taiwan | $7.12B | +28% | +6% | 14% | 0.9× | -17.0% | +19.9% |
| easyJet EZJ.L | United Kingdom | $6.96B | +90% | +10% | 5% | 0.5× | 4.8% | +27.4% |
| Spring Airlines 601021.SS | China | $6.51B | -6% | +16% | 6% | 2.5× | n/a | n/a |