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Yulu Ao

Chinese toymaker Pop Mart remains under pressure despite carrying out six share buy-backs over the past few days following a sell-off after its results, raising questions over whether the weakness reflects concerns about its Labubu-led growth and valuation.
The Beijing-based company has stepped up efforts to support its share price through market purchases. Pop Mart bought back 700,000 shares on Thursday at prices ranging from HK$140.90 to HK$142.30, for a total of HK$99.2 million (US$12.6 million), according to a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange.
The latest moves extended the company’s buy-backs to six consecutive days from March 26. Over that period, Pop Mart repurchased a total of 9.32 million shares for about HK$1.4 billion, even as the stock fell 16 per cent. So far this year, the company has conducted eight rounds of buy-backs, acquiring 11.22 million shares worth about HK$1.74 billion.
The stock closed 2.4 per cent lower at HK$141.80 on Thursday, marking a nearly 48 per cent plunge since its recent peak of HK$269.80 on February 10, wiping out nearly HK$101 billion in market capitalisation.
The flurry of repurchases followed a sharp sell-off on March 25, when the company’s shares tumbled nearly 23 per cent after the release of its latest results. Pop Mart reported a 285 per cent growth in net profit and forecast no less than 20 per cent expansion this year, driven by continued investment in its flagship Labubu franchise and new product launches.

While analysts had initially said the earnings were broadly in line with expectations, sentiment shifted quickly, with several brokerages including Morgan Stanley lowering their target prices and adopting a more cautious stance on the stock.
Recent disclosures also showed that some global institutions, including Citi, were net sellers, while trading data compiled by Futu Securities showed short interest had risen to 10 per cent as of March 27, up from 7.6 per cent a week earlier.
Nomura said the company’s 20 per cent sales growth target for 2026 marked a sharp slowdown from its triple-digit expansion in recent years.
“Pop Mart’s proactive pace control of its scale should sustain long-term growth potential … nevertheless, the capital market will possibly hold muted expectation for Pop Mart in the short term,” Nomura analysts including Jizhou Dong wrote in a March 25 note. The bank reaffirmed a buy rating but reduced its target price to HK$261 from HK$372.
Revenue from The Monsters line, which includes Labubu, surged 365.7 per cent year on year to 14.16 billion yuan (US$2.1 billion). However, the performance also raised concerns about the company’s growing reliance on Labubu-driven growth, with analysts expecting the segment to account for about 38 per cent of total revenue, up from 35 per cent in the first half of 2025.
Analysts also said the pullback may have reflected a combination of cautious sentiment towards discretionary consumption and lingering concerns over the company’s growth trajectory.
“We feel market sentiment towards trendy toys and new consumption names remains relatively pessimistic, and investors may still be digesting Pop Mart’s relatively conservative guidance,” said Jeff Zhang, an analyst at Morningstar. “While previous buy-backs helped lift the share price, companies cannot rely on such measures indefinitely to support valuations.”
Future re-rating, he added, would depend more on earnings growth, particularly driven by overseas expansion and sales of plush toys and other new product categories.
Deutsche Bank said Pop Mart’s overseas growth showed signs of a sequential slowdown in the fourth quarter, with North America declining 21 per cent quarter on quarter and overall overseas revenue missing expectations.
“The fading overseas traction may pressure Pop Mart’s 2026 outlook, and it is too early to identify a turning point,” Deutsche Bank analyst Sammi Xu, who downgraded the firm from hold to sell, wrote in a March 25 note.
Deutsche Bank added that as collectible intellectual property was inherently cyclical, the company’s flagship Monsters franchise may have already peaked, with no new blockbuster line yet able to replicate its global appeal.
Pop Mart, founded by Wang Ning in 2010, is best known for its collectible designer toys, particularly its Labubu dolls, and has grown beyond blind-box figurines into businesses such as home appliances, films, theme parks and desserts.
The company operated 185 overseas stores by the end of last year, up by 95 from a year earlier. These included 72 outlets in the US, with plans to expand beyond 100 this year, including flagship locations in New York’s Times Square and along Fifth Avenue.
It has also continued to raise its global profile through prominent appearances, including the World Cup in June and the 100th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in the US in November.


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Pop Mart has stepped up efforts to support its share price through buy-backs. Photo: Getty Images

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Toymaker’s shares have fallen nearly 50 per cent since February as investors weigh slowing overseas growth and dependence on flagship line


Toymaker’s shares have fallen nearly 50 per cent since February as investors weigh slowing overseas growth and dependence on flagship line.


China’s Pop Mart struggles to stem slide despite buy-backs amid Labubu reliance concerns

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Toymaker’s shares have fallen nearly 50 per cent since February as investors weigh slowing overseas growth and dependence on flagship line

Toymaker’s shares have fallen nearly 50 per cent since February as investors weigh slowing overseas growth and dependence on flagship line