Goldman Sachs maintains a Buy rating on WeRide and raises the 12-month target price to HK$54.72

Overview

This is a Goldman Sachs company research report summarizing the key takeaways from WeRide's 1Q26 earnings call. The core view is that WeRide's Robotaxi commercialization in China and overseas markets is accelerating, and that global fleet expansion, increasing city coverage, improved algorithm iteration efficiency from the simulation platform, and deep cooperation with OEMs, Tier-1 suppliers, and compute platforms are all supporting future revenue growth.

Core views

Goldman maintains a positive view and a Buy rating. The main reasons are: first, the company now covers more than 40 cities globally, and commercialization in new regions is accelerating; second, Robotaxi fleet expansion should improve rider experience, reduce wait times, and enhance coverage efficiency; third, the WeRide GENESIS simulation platform can generate long-tail scenarios and improve training efficiency, strengthening self-iterative algorithms; and fourth, the synergy between L2+ and L4 data and technology platforms, together with supply-chain cooperation, supports long-term scaling.

Analysis framework

The report combines 1Q26 results, management call information, fleet deployment plans, overseas expansion progress, revenue and gross margin forecast adjustments, and a long-term EV/EBITDA valuation framework. The valuation uses 2031E EBITDA multiplied by a 16x target EV/EBITDA multiple, then discounts back to 2026E at a 10.8% cost of equity to derive a 12-month target price of HK$54.72.

Methodology notes

• Valuation methodsdiscounted EV/EBITDA

  Discounted 2031E EV/EBITDA valuation

  Goldman uses 2031E EBITDA and a 16x target EV/EBITDA multiple to estimate long-term enterprise value, then discounts it back to 2026E at a 10.8% cost of equity, reflecting the company's long-term growth potential.

• valuation_assumptioncost of equity

  Cost of equity assumption

  The cost of equity is 10.8%, based on a beta of 1.2, a risk-free rate of 3.0%, and an equity risk premium of 6.5%.

• research_frameworkGS Factor Profile

  GS Factor Profile

  This framework compares the stock with the coverage universe and industry peers across four dimensions: growth, financial returns, valuation multiples, and composite percentile.

• research_frameworkM&A Rank

  M&A ranking

  Goldman rates the probability of a company becoming a potential acquisition target on a scale from 1 to 3; in this report, WeRide's M&A Rank is 3, indicating that M&A factors are not important to the target price.

Asset mapping & comparison

Structured mapping from thesis to named assets (strengths, weaknesses, peers, risks).

• WeRide (0800.HK)

  Covered name; Hong Kong-listed autonomous driving and Robotaxi company

  Strengths

  Coverage across more than 40 cities globally, a clear Robotaxi fleet expansion path, synergy between L2+ and L4 data and technology platforms, the WeRide GENESIS simulation platform improves long-tail scenario training efficiency, and the company works with OEMs, Tier-1 suppliers, and compute platforms.

  Weaknesses

  The company remains in a sizable loss-making phase, and net profit is still expected to be negative from 2026E to 2028E, so P/E is not yet meaningful; commercialization at scale still needs to be proven.

  Comparison

  The target price implies a 2027E P/S of about 23x, above the post-listing average of about 20x; Goldman believes the higher multiple can be supported by China and overseas fleet expansion and EBITDA margin improvement.

  Risks

  Fleet expansion slower than expected, intensifying price competition, regulatory changes, and slower-than-expected declines in vehicle and ADK costs.

Key data

• RatingBuyGoldman maintains a Buy rating.
• 12-month target priceHK$54.72The previous target was HK$54.23.
• Current share priceHK$20.66Price shown on the report disclosure page.
• Implied upside164.8%Based on the HK$54.72 target price and HK$20.66 current price.
• Global Robotaxi fleetAbout 1,300 vehiclesOf which the China Robotaxi fleet is about 1,000 vehicles.
• Target fleet by end-2026More than 2,600 vehiclesGlobal Robotaxi target fleet size.
• Overseas deployment planDeploy over 1,200 Robotaxis in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Riyadh by 2027Overseas expansion plan disclosed by management.
• 2026E revenueRMB 11.61 hundred millionGoldman's new forecast, about 1% above the prior estimate.
• 2027E revenueRMB 20.50 hundred millionGoldman's new forecast, about 1% above the prior estimate.
• 2028E revenueRMB 38.42 hundred millionGoldman's new forecast, about 1% above the prior estimate.
• 2026E/2027E/2028E net lossRMB 15.60 hundred million / 15.24 hundred million / 13.82 hundred millionLosses narrowed slightly versus prior forecasts.
• Target EV/EBITDA multiple16xUsed for 2031E EBITDA valuation, unchanged.
• 2030E profitability inflection pointNet profit of RMB 17.43 hundred millionForecasts indicate net profit turns positive in 2030E.

Impact & implications

If fleet expansion and overseas commercialization proceed as planned, WeRide should be able to gradually improve gross margin and EBITDA margin through higher revenue, a greater share of service revenue, and economies of scale. The target price implies significant upside, but the valuation is highly dependent on long-term fleet size, commercialization pace, cost declines, and the regulatory environment.

Risks

• Fleet expansion in China and overseas markets may be slower than expected.
• Robotaxi or autonomous driving solutions may face more intense price competition than expected.
• Regulatory changes may affect the rollout of driverless commercialization.
• Vehicle cost and ADK cost declines may be slower than expected.
• The company remains loss-making, so there is execution risk around the long-term profitability inflection point and margin improvement.

What to watch

• Whether the global Robotaxi fleet can reach more than 2,600 vehicles by the end of 2026.
• The progress of deploying more than 1,200 Robotaxis in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Riyadh by 2027.
• Improvements in China Robotaxi coverage efficiency, wait times, and rider experience.
• The actual contribution of the WeRide GENESIS simulation platform to long-tail scenario training and algorithm iteration efficiency.
• Whether 2026E-2028E revenue growth, gross margin improvement, and narrowing net losses are in line with Goldman Sachs' forecasts.
• The pace of vehicle and ADK cost declines, as well as margin changes driven by a rising share of service revenue.