> We are now 2 month in the second quarter. So the management has a
> pretty good view of the performance of the second quarter. And they
> expressed this with 'We believe the worst is already behind us and
> look forward to recovery in the balance of the year'. Meaning, the
> performance of the stores in April and May are good.

> On May 28, 1:50 am, bad...@gmail.com wrote:

> > ~ Good Analysis ~
> > But some how we do not have clarity...also I do know that Goldman
> > Sachs is one of the largest Ins. Invest. in this company.
> > Couple of quarters ago...during the earning confernce call I asked NPD
> > if they own the real estate (stores), at that time thye told me that
> > 95 % of the stiores are rented.
> > That does not sound a very good statregy .....I have been inversting
> > in this since the IPO and am still hoping that we will see some
> > upside.....
> > Keep posting.........

> > ========================================================================

> > On May 27, 5:16 am, s.y...@favorit.com.cn wrote:

> > > Because of lack of interest in NPD from professional analyst, I
> > > thought I will submit the first analysis of NPD Q1 quarterly report :)

> > > The revenue growth is disappointing. what we are seeing is that NPD
> > > opened 16 new stores in the first quarter. This is a small number
> > > compared to previous year but it is also indicating that the
> > > management is moving away from their previous strategy. This is also
> > > shown in the revenue growth of 12.1% instead of in the 20%-range. But
> > > I think the new strategy is a good thing because there is emphasize on
> > > the quality of stores and location. The revenue growth will be slower
> > > but the earnings as part of revenue will improve because. The per-
> > > store performance should improve over time. Anyway, the number of
> > > newly opened stores in the first quarter is very meager, even there is
> > > a shift in strategy. I expect the number of newly opened stores to
> > > grow in the 2nd quarter and onwards in the future. As the report
> > > indicates, there is already talks ongoing with the local governments
> > > of Hubei and Jilin Province. There is a lot of room for NPD to grow.
> > > Either by growing organically or by buying up smaller rivals. But this
> > > time with more emphasize on quality of the stores.

> > > First quarter revenue contribution from prescription drugs was 22.1%
> > > This is much better than the 19.7% in the previous quarter. I think
> > > that we already see some effect of the health care reforms which is
> > > shifting the drug distribution from hospitals to retail pharmacy. This
> > > is a good development for NPD and for the consumers.

> > > The company's margin is still improving and the balance and cashflow
> > > are very healthy.

> > > The earning of RMB 30 mln is a disappointment. In Q1 2008 this was 55
> > > mln. But this can be explained by RMB 12 mln less interest income and
> > > increased sales and marketing costs of 13 mln. This is very
> > > reasonable. What is important is that the gross margin, which is
> > > 48.2%, is still very strong.

> > > A positive note in the report is the expression of the management that
> > > 'We believe the worst is already behind us and look forward to
> > > recovery in the balance of the year'- Hide quoted text -

> > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -

> - Show quoted text -