(Yicai Global) March 31 -- Shares in Kweichow Moutai, China's most valuable brand for the last three years, dropped as much as 2.72 percent today after the liquor maker posted its smallest profit and revenue growth in five years for 2020.

Kweichow Moutai’s stock price [SHA:600519] was trading down 2.14 percent at CNY2,012 (USD306.59) at 2:35 p.m. China time, giving it a market capitalization of CNY2.56 trillion (USD390 billion). Shares had earlier in the day fallen to CNY2,000 apiece.

Profit gained just 13.3 percent last year from the year before to CNY46.7 billion (USD7.1 billion), the firm said in its 2020 earnings report released yesterday. This is a significant slowdown from growth of 17.1 percent in 2019 and 30 percent in 2018.

Meanwhile, revenue climbed 10.3 percent to CNY98 billion (USD15 billion), it said. Again, this was a narrowing of the 16 percent expansion logged in 2019 and 27 percent in 2018.

The firm has set itself a target of 10.5 percent revenue growth for this year.

Despite the shrinking earnings, the Zunyi, southwestern Guizhou province-based firm distributed the highest dividend to its shareholders since it went public in 2001. It handed out CNY24.2 billion (USD3.7 billion) in profit distribution, amounting to CNY192.93 (USD29.40) for every 10 shares held.

The fiery alcohol Moutai is still Kweichow Moutai’s main source of income, accounting for 89 percent of sales, the company said. Sales of Moutai jumped 11.9 percent last year despite the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic to CNY84.8 billion (USD13 billion).

It produced 75,200 tons of base liquor in 2020, two thirds of which was Moutai. Its inventory gained 3.1 percent year on year to 249,200 tons, it added.

Editor: Kim Taylor