Stock Price Surges Over 170% in Two Months, ST Jinglan Halts Trading Again Starting Today

Everyday Economic News Reporter | Peng Fei    Everyday Economic News Editor | Chen Junjie

A capital frenzy lacking fundamental support has been abruptly “slammed on the brakes” again.

On the evening of March 12, just after changing its name, Indium Target New Materials (Harbin) Co., Ltd. (ST Jinglan, SZ000711, stock price 4.65 yuan, market value 13.565 billion yuan) announced that due to the stock price deviating significantly from the company’s performance, trading would be suspended for investigation starting from the market open on March 13.

The “Daily Economic News” reporter noted that since late January this year, ST Jinglan’s stock price has skyrocketed like a runaway horse, with a cumulative increase of 176.79% in just over a month. However, behind this hype, driven by concepts such as “target material transformation,” “asset injection,” and “overseas mining acquisitions,” the company faces an expected loss of over 150 million yuan in 2025, overdue payments of tens of millions to its controlling shareholder, and strained cash flow.

Now, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange has decisively taken action against abnormal trading behaviors. With a high price-to-book ratio of 23 times, how much more can the bubble in ST Jinglan’s valuation inflate?

Stock Price Surge Draws Regulatory Attention; Valuation Bubble Far Exceeds Industry Levels

ST Jinglan’s recent performance has been wildly volatile. Data shows that on March 10, 11, and 12 of 2026, the stock’s closing prices deviated by more than 14.00% cumulatively over three consecutive trading days. Over a longer period, from January 23 to March 12, 2026, the stock price increased by 176.79%.

During this period, the stock repeatedly experienced abnormal trading fluctuations, including one instance of severe abnormal volatility.

This is the second time ST Jinglan has been suspended for investigation in a short period.

Previously, from January 23 to February 26, 2026, the stock rose by 116.67%, and was suspended for three trading days starting February 27 for investigation. However, after resuming trading, the market’s enthusiasm remained uncalmed.

In response to the increasingly irrational speculation, regulators have acted decisively.

ST Jinglan announced on the evening of March 12 that, according to inquiries, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange’s official regulatory updates indicated that the stock has recently been under close monitoring. Some investors engaged in abnormal trading behaviors affecting the normal order of stock trading, and the exchange has taken disciplinary measures such as suspending trading for relevant investors.

To protect investors’ interests, ST Jinglan applied for a trading halt starting from the market open on March 13, 2026, with an expected duration of no more than five trading days.

The “Daily Economic News” reporter noted that from a valuation perspective, ST Jinglan’s current stock price is extremely high. As of March 12, 2026, the company’s price-to-book ratio was as high as 23.41. In contrast, the industry average for resource recycling companies, according to the China Securities Industry Association, is 2.21.

There is a significant discrepancy between ST Jinglan’s valuation and industry peers, with the latest P/B ratio far exceeding the industry average, which is inconsistent with the company’s ongoing losses and lack of stable profitability in its main business.

In the March 12 evening announcement, ST Jinglan stated that recent stock price fluctuations have been heavily influenced by market sentiment and concept speculation. Some market opinions have overinterpreted the company’s new business development, asset injection, rebranding, and valuation restructuring, leading to overly high expectations that are far from the company’s actual performance.

Weak Fundamentals Hide Multiple Risks; Performance and Operational Issues Are Hard to Cover

Contrasting sharply with the lively trading activity is ST Jinglan’s weak fundamentals.

In terms of profitability, ST Jinglan has been in continuous loss for many years. After completing bankruptcy reorganization at the end of 2023, the net profit attributable to the parent company in 2024 was -119 million yuan. According to the 2025 performance forecast, the company expects net profit after non-recurring gains and losses to further decline to between -220 million and -150 million yuan, representing a year-on-year increase in loss of 25.63% to 84.26%.

Additionally, in its March 12 evening announcement, ST Jinglan mentioned that its zinc-indium solid hazardous waste resource utilization business contributed negatively to profits in 2024 and 2025. After excluding asset impairments, share-based incentives, and other non-operating factors, the company’s main business remains unprofitable.

The “Daily Economic News” reporter observed that the core concepts supporting the stock’s surge are highly uncertain and even seem to be “pie-in-the-sky.”

On March 9, 2026, ST Jinglan completed a business registration change, officially renaming itself “Indium Target New Materials (Harbin) Co., Ltd.” However, “Indium Target New Materials” is currently just an empty shell concept.

ST Jinglan stated that its target material business is still in the stage of equipment overhaul and re-commissioning of the acquired production lines, and has not yet officially started production or generated revenue or profit. The downstream customers in the ITO target industry have strict requirements, and even if the company produces products, they require lengthy validation periods. Market development and order acquisition face significant uncertainties.

Furthermore, market expectations for asset injection from the controlling shareholder’s Xinlian Environmental Technology Co., Ltd. (“Xinlian Tech”) were very high. However, the reality is that the industry investor promised to initiate the asset injection process before December 31, 2025, but the company has overdue on its restructuring plan. Due to prior administrative penalties, the company expects to be unable to complete asset injection via equity issuance within the next three years and can only use cash. As of the third quarter of 2025, the company’s cash on hand was only 9.1263 million yuan.

ST Jinglan warned that, given the large scale of Xinlian Tech and the company’s limited funds, it plans to acquire assets in installments via cash, risking failure to complete all asset injections by the end of 2027. Rumors that ST Jinglan will establish a global indium resource monopoly are significantly exaggerated. In fact, Xinlian Tech’s Indium production at its Yuetou headquarters over the past five years was only 96, 114, 99, 47, and 5 tons respectively.

Moreover, the integrity and funding chain of the controlling shareholder are under dual threat, posing a “Damocles sword” over the listed company. According to the 2023 “Reorganization Investment Agreement,” the controlling shareholder, Yunnan Jiajun, triggered a performance compensation obligation of 52.0851 million yuan for 2024. However, as of now, the company has only received 6 million yuan, with the remaining 46.0851 million yuan overdue. Due to failure to fulfill the performance compensation commitments disclosed publicly, Yunnan Jiajun has been given a notice of criticism by the Shenzhen Stock Exchange and administrative regulatory measures by the Heilongjiang Securities Regulatory Bureau requiring correction.

Considering ST Jinglan’s projected losses in 2025, a new, larger cash compensation obligation is likely to be triggered. However, as of February 27, 2026, Yunnan Jiajun pledged 92.59% of its shares in the company, facing significant liquidity pressure and doubts about future performance. Additionally, the legacy performance compensation owed by Zhongke Dingshi still involves over 16 million yuan in cash and 14 million shares, with high risk of non-recovery.