Ask AI · How does state-owned capital reshape the governance system of SanTe Cableway?

The underlying logic of operational changes is “State-owned capital enters—Governance reshapes—Financials improve—Value is reborn.”

Author | Mu He

Editor | Xiao Bai

On March 30, 2026, SanTe Cableway issued an important announcement, stating that the company received the “Notice of Administrative Penalty Prior Notification” from the China Securities Regulatory Commission, which penalized the former controlling shareholder and actual controller for capital occupation issues.

The involved principal and interest funds were fully recovered by April 2022. This penalty does not involve delisting or risk warning situations, nor does it affect normal operations. It pertains to the former controlling shareholder and historical violations by the old management team, unrelated to the current state-controlled management team, marking the thorough resolution of the company’s past illegal activities.

Review of the past three years of development shows that since the state capital’s entry in 2023, SanTe Cableway has undergone a systematic overhaul of its corporate governance. High proportion of share pledges and illegal related-party transactions have been completely eliminated, debt levels continuously reduced, net profit turned from loss to profit, dividend mechanisms reinstated, financial indicators comprehensively improved, and investment value gradually restored.

Overall, SanTe Cableway is a classic case where governance improvement in an A-share company drives a comprehensive turnaround of its financial fundamentals.

Value Rebuilding and Governance Paradigm Shift

(1) Stable Shareholding by State Capital, Addressing Historical Risk Sources

In 2013, Wuhan Contemporary Technology Industry Group Co., Ltd. became the controlling shareholder of SanTe Cableway, with the “Contemporary Group” leader Ai Luming becoming the actual controller.

From 2019 to 2022, due to the group’s own financial strain, SanTe Cableway was occupied by non-operational funds from the original controlling shareholder “Contemporary Group” exceeding 4 billion yuan. These fund occupation issues were not promptly disclosed in annual reports, leading to serious financial crises and regulatory risks.

In June 2023, the original controlling shareholder transferred control to Wuhan Gaoke State-owned Holding Group Co., Ltd. through “share transfer + voting rights waiver,” with Gaoke Group directly and indirectly holding a total of 21.05% of SanTe Cableway shares, becoming the controlling shareholder. Wuhan East Lake New Technology Development Zone Management Committee became the actual controller.

Thus, SanTe Cableway officially transitioned from a privately controlled listed company to a state-controlled listed company. Subsequently, shareholding was continuously increased to further consolidate control.

In September 2025, the 3.52 million shares held by Contemporary Group were judicially transferred to Gaoke Group, combined with 1.31 million shares previously auctioned via online bidding from Contemporary Urban Construction Development, totaling a 23.77% stake and officially becoming the company’s largest shareholder.

If the core issue of SanTe Cableway before was “Contemporary Group” continuously hollowing out and governance chaos leading to value destruction; then after the state capital’s entry, the company promotes value enhancement based on compliance and trustworthiness. The most fundamental change is a thorough shift in values and corporate governance.

(2) Governance Structure Reshaping, Enhancing Compliance Management

State capital’s entry and increased holdings solved the previous issues of excessive share pledge risks and unstable control rights from the root, thoroughly eliminating制度漏洞 such as “dominant share but failed governance” and arbitrary fund occupation, laying a solid foundation for standardized governance.

A straightforward data point: in 2021 and 2022, the largest shareholder “Contemporary Urban Construction” had pledge rates of 80% and 100%, respectively. Since Gaoke Group’s entry, there has been no pledge at all.

Regarding governance standardization, since 2023, SanTe Cableway has formulated, improved, and optimized a series of internal policies. After state control, the company built a modern governance system of Party Committee—Board of Directors—Supervisory Board—Management, transforming decision-making from “one-man rule” to collective decision-making.

First, Party leadership is fully integrated, establishing a Party Committee pre-research mechanism for “Three Major and One Large” issues, with rules and detailed procedures, making 46 major items list-based and process-oriented, and establishing a Discipline Inspection Office to strengthen intra-party supervision.

Second, the structure of directors, supervisors, and senior management has been fully optimized. State-owned directors have been appointed to the board, employee directors added, and independent directors’ independence significantly enhanced. By 2025, governance adjustments and charter standardizations for 23 subsidiaries have been completed, covering all levels.

Third, decision boundaries are clear and traceable, defining layered authority for the Party Committee, Board, and President’s Office, with major issues collectively reviewed and documented throughout, preventing unilateral or personal interference in operational decisions.

By October 2025, the board approved revisions or new proposals for 15 policies, covering committees’ work rules, internal audit, information disclosure, external investments, guarantees, donations, and more, significantly improving operational compliance.

In terms of fund management, strict bans on non-operational related-party occupation and illegal guarantees are enforced from approval to disbursement and monitoring; related-party transactions are strictly approved, fairly priced, and fully disclosed, eliminating illegal related-party transaction soil; information disclosure processes are standardized and responsibilities clarified to ensure timeliness, accuracy, and completeness.

Data from mid-2025 shows the company has fully eliminated non-operational funds occupation by controlling shareholders and related parties, with zero related-party transactions, demonstrating effective internal control compliance—contrast with 2022, which involved 174 million yuan in related-party mergers and 44 million yuan in related-party debts.

Strategic Focus on Core Business, Developing Cultural and Tourism Integrated Operators

After state capital’s entry, the strategic direction was readjusted, leading the company back to its core cultural and tourism business, abandoning the previous cross-industry expansion and high-leverage aggressive mode, establishing the core strategy of “focusing on cableways, expanding scenic spots, and transforming into ecological theme parks.”

The company actively optimized asset structure, orderly exited some low-efficiency loss-making projects, revitalized idle assets, and recovered funds, significantly improving asset operation quality and risk resistance.

Currently, the company operates scenic spots and cableway projects in 9 provinces (autonomous regions), forming a nationwide brand chain. Key projects include Mount Fanjing in Guizhou, Mount Hua cableway in Shaanxi, Monkey Island in Hainan, Zhuhai Jing Shan cableway, Lushan San Die Quan, etc., creating a cross-regional, scaled, branded cultural tourism network.

Building on its leading position in cableway operations, the company is leveraging Qiandao Lake Muxin Valley as a strategic pivot to expand growth. The ecological theme park is expected to complete key construction in 2026 and start operation in 2027, with an annual net profit potential of 47 million yuan after reaching full capacity.

Simultaneously, the company is upgrading existing projects like Zhuhai Jing Shan Phase II, Hainan Monkey Island, and Lushan San Die Quan, and accelerating the layout of “Technology + IP” immersive experiences, continuously enhancing asset efficiency and profitability.

Fundamentals Fully Improved, Strengthening Investor Returns

The good results are a natural outcome of doing the right things. Governance improvements directly translate into impressive operational achievements. Since 2023, the year of state capital’s entry, the company’s financial indicators have experienced a complete turnaround and continued improvement.

Profitability turned positive: net profit attributable to shareholders was a loss of 174 million and 77 million in 2021-2022; in 2023-2024, it was 128 million and 140 million, reaching historic highs since listing. In the first three quarters of 2025, net profit already reached 138 million.

ROE rebounded from -18% in 2021 and -13.9% in 2022 to over 10% in 2023 and 2024, with 9.7% in the first three quarters of 2025, indicating restored profitability.

(Shizhi Fengyun APP - Wo Gu Da Shu Ju)

As of the end of Q3 2025, the company’s asset-liability ratio dropped to 19.3%, a significant improvement from the high of 50.4% in 2021, reflecting a markedly optimized financial structure.

(Shizhi Fengyun APP - Wo Gu Da Shu Ju)

Additionally, interest-bearing debt ratios continued to decline, cash flow remained ample, and financial security and stability significantly improved.

While operations stabilized, the company highly values shareholder returns, resuming cash dividends after ten years: in 2023 and 2024, dividends were 39 million and 44 million yuan, respectively, with payout ratios exceeding 30% of net profit for the period.

(Data source: Wind)

In April 2025, the company announced its shareholder dividend plan for 2025-2027, prioritizing cash dividends, with a minimum of 10% payout ratio under profitable conditions, and implementing differentiated dividends based on development stages (20%/40%/80%).

It also commits to no more than two-year intervals between distributions and a total of no less than 30% of distributable profits over the past three years, ensuring reasonable investor returns and sustainable long-term development through transparent decision-making and disclosure.

In summary, the underlying logic of SanTe Cableway’s operational transformation is: “State-owned capital enters—Governance reshapes—Financials improve—Value is reborn.” The state-controlled stake is not merely a change of control but a thorough, penetrating governance overhaul.

From stable equity, Party leadership, closed-loop internal controls, to personnel normalization, core business focus, and steady dividends, plus the historical penalty resolution in March 2026, the entire governance paradigm has been thoroughly transformed from a “problematic private enterprise” with encroachment and hollowing out to a “standardized state-owned enterprise” with renewed value.

The governance reforms have completely eliminated issues like capital occupation, disclosure violations, high pledges, high debt, etc., achieved zero related-party transactions, continuous profit, regular dividends, optimized debt structure, ample cash flow, and comprehensive financial improvement.

Under the dual drive of empowered state ownership and standardized governance, the company’s long-term foundation is fully strengthened, with governance and operational dividends continuously released, driving steady value recovery and enhancement.

Disclaimer: This report (article) is based on publicly disclosed information of listed companies, relying primarily on the company’s legal obligation disclosures (including but not limited to interim announcements, periodic reports, and official platforms). Valuation Fengyun strives for objectivity and fairness but does not guarantee accuracy, completeness, or timeliness. The information or opinions expressed herein do not constitute investment advice. Valuation Fengyun assumes no responsibility for actions taken based on this report.

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