Xiaomi’s Premium Pivot: Fewer Phones, Higher Prices, and a Hybrid-EV Gambit
Published on 08/09/2026 at 11:51 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
The numbers tell a story of deliberate contraction. Xiaomi is steering away from the budget end of the smartphone market, and the strategy carries a heavy short-term cost. Analysts at China International Capital Corporation, reaffirming their “Outperform” rating on 3 August, project second-quarter revenue of 107.14 billion yuan — a 7.6 percent decline — with adjusted net profit sliding roughly 43.6 percent to 6.114 billion yuan. The trade-off: average selling prices are expected to hit a record 1,340 yuan as the company abandons cheaper entry-level models.
Morgan Stanley’s late-July forecast is marginally more upbeat, calling for revenue above 100 billion yuan and adjusted net profit near six billion yuan on the back of strong handset volumes and a resilient gross margin. Market research data shows shipments of 31.2 million units in the quarter — 15 percent ahead of the bank’s expectations. Both houses converge on the same narrative: Xiaomi is selling fewer devices at higher price points, while the bottom line absorbs the shock of a global memory-chip shortage that disproportionately squeezes mid-tier manufacturers.
The results, due 18 August, will arrive alongside a board meeting to review the unaudited interim figures and a possible interim dividend. The first quarter offered a preview of the strain: revenue fell 10.9 percent year on year to 99.142 billion yuan, adjusted net profit dropped 43.1 percent to 6.07 billion yuan, and GAAP net income tumbled 57 percent to 4.72 billion yuan. The smartphone division, traditionally the company’s backbone, saw sales decline 12.5 percent to 44.273 billion yuan. Yet the ecosystem keeps expanding — IoT devices on the platform reached 1.119 billion, underscoring a widening footprint even as the core business bleeds.
Buybacks, a Chip Listing, and a Stock That Keeps Falling
Management has been active on the capital-returns front. Between 3 June and 15 July, Xiaomi executed buybacks in fourteen tranches — starting near 28.65 Hong Kong dollars per share and finishing at roughly 25.82 Hong Kong dollars on 15 July — for a total of about 100.7 million Hong Kong dollars. Under the mandate approved 2 June, which permits repurchases of up to 2.58 billion shares, the company has so far collected approximately 79.8 million shares, or 0.31 percent of the float. A lock-up on new share issuance runs until 14 August, while roughly 824,000 shares from employee programs entered circulation between 2 and 15 July.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Xiaomi?
A separate automated buyback arrangement, announced in January, commits up to 2.5 billion Hong Kong dollars (around 295 million euros) through an independent broker, running from 23 January until the 2026 annual general meeting or until the sum is reached, with a waiver from the Hong Kong exchange.
None of this has arrested the share price slide. The stock closed last Friday at 3.04 euros, up 2.13 percent on the day, but that bounce follows a 7.47 percent surge on 27 July when CEO Lei Jun unveiled the new SkyNomad SUV line. Year to date, the equity remains 29.83 percent lower, and it sits 53.57 percent below its 52-week high of 6.54 euros set on 25 September 2025.
Late July brought a modest tailwind from an unexpected corner: Xiaomi’s stake in memory-chip maker CXMT, which celebrated its stock-market debut, fits the company’s broader push to embed itself in China’s semiconductor supply chain. Lei Jun has also pledged a “big assembly” of proprietary chips, an operating system, and AI systems this year — a bid to reduce dependence on Qualcomm and Google while tightening ecosystem integration.
SkyNomad: A Second Act Beyond Battery-Only
The product pipeline is where Xiaomi is placing its boldest bets. On 30 July, the company unveiled SkyNomad, its second vehicle line, opening pre-orders for two extended-range SUVs: the seven-seat N90 Max at 299,900 yuan and the five-seat N70 Max at 259,900 yuan, with first deliveries slated for September. The move marks Xiaomi’s first foray beyond pure battery-electric vehicles.
Lei Jun noted at the launch that cumulative SU7 and YU7 deliveries have surpassed 700,000 units. The 2026 target stands at 550,000 vehicles — roughly 34 percent above the approximately 410,000 delivered in 2025. First-half EV deliveries reached 185,055 units, up 17.2 percent year on year but only about 34 percent of the annual goal.
Xiaomi at a turning point? This analysis reveals what investors need to know now.
The timing is not without risk. Lei Jun defended the extended-range entry on Weibo on 29 July, citing the Li Auto L6’s sales performance as evidence of demand, while acknowledging headwinds: retail sales of extended-range EVs in China fell 29.31 percent year on year to 82,000 units in June, according to the China Passenger Car Association. Whether SkyNomad can buck that trend will only become clear once September deliveries begin.
Elsewhere, the Redmi sub-brand teased a major product announcement at ChinaJoy 2026 in Shanghai, likely from the K100 series with a 185-Hz OLED display and an 8,500 mAh battery. Xiaomi also pushed a security update for nine smartphones and tablets on Thursday, though details remain undisclosed. No analyst rating changes or price-target adjustments have surfaced in the past two weeks.
Ad
Xiaomi Stock: New Analysis - 9 August
Fresh Xiaomi information released. What's the impact for investors? Our latest independent report examines recent figures and market trends.
