Kido Group: Navigating Financial Challenges and Strategic Shifts

By Thuy Yen, Thai Ha
Tue, November 4, 2025 | 3:45 PM GMT+7

Kido Group’s Strategic Move to Sell Stake in Kido Frozen Foods

Vietnam’s Kido Group (HoSE: KDC) is making headlines with its plan to sell an additional 49% stake in its frozen foods subsidiary, Kido Frozen Foods JSC (KDF). The deal, estimated at around VND 2.5 trillion (approximately $95 million), is aimed at securing the company’s financial footing. This strategic initiative comes as Kido faces hurdles, having struggled to meet profit targets for the fifth consecutive year.

The anticipated sale could yield a gross profit of approximately VND 1.3 trillion ($49.4 million), which would significantly contribute to the company’s objectives for the year. If finalized in the last quarter of 2025, this transaction could play a pivotal role in helping Kido achieve its ambitious pre-tax profit target of VND 800 billion ($30.4 million)—a figure that is 7.6 times higher than the previous year’s outcomes.

Understanding Kido’s Financial Landscape

For the past four years, Kido has consistently fallen short of its profit goals. Management has expressed intentions to not only rely on its core business operations but also to enhance earnings through investments and mergers & acquisitions (M&A). In the third quarter of 2025, Kido reported consolidated revenues of VND 2.43 trillion ($92.27 million), marking a year-on-year increase of 7.8%. Gross profits also rose modestly to VND 472 billion ($17.93 million).

Despite the positive revenue growth, pre-tax profits saw an impressive surge, quadrupling to VND 73 billion, while net profits tripled to VND 66.7 billion ($2.53 million). This boost was driven largely by increased earnings from joint ventures and associates, contributing VND 88 billion to the bottom line. Kido also reported gains from other activities, bringing in VND 7 billion—an increase from just VND 1 billion during the same period the previous year.

Analyzing Revenue Streams and Challenges

In the first nine months of 2025, Kido recorded a net revenue of VND 6.59 trillion ($250.16 million), reflecting a healthy 14% increase from the previous year. Gross profits for the same period also rose 14%, totaling VND 1.2 trillion ($45.58 million). However, there is a stark contrast when examining the detailed breakdown of these results. Profits derived from core operations and financial income totaled VND 1.4 trillion ($53.06 million), which unfortunately fell short in covering total financial, selling, and administrative expenses that amounted to VND 1.45 trillion.

The company’s edible oil segment, a major contributor with VND 5 trillion ($190.1 million) in revenue, recorded an operating loss due to substantial sales and administrative costs. Other product segments fared similarly, with only Kido’s confectionery business showing a modest profit of VND 59 billion ($2.24 million).

Overall profitability primarily stemmed from financial income—VND 38 billion ($1.44 million) and other income from various ventures. Kido had five joint ventures and associates at the end of the quarter, having divested from Dabaco Food earlier in the year. Among these, Bac Binh Construction Investment Joint Stock Company, specializing in real estate and leasing, was a newly added entity, owning and managing the Van Hanh Mall.

The Implications of Divesting Kido Frozen Foods

The leadership at Kido Group remains resolute in achieving the pre-tax profit target of VND 800 billion ($30.4 million) for the year, aiming to achieve less than 20% of this target by the year’s end, which raises questions about the ongoing viability of its business model. The group’s historic challenge has been setting ambitious profit targets—ranging from VND 800 to 900 billion—yet repeatedly failing to meet them.

On October 15, Kido’s board approved a policy to find a partner for transferring 49% of Kido Frozen Foods’s (KDF) equity capital, with an expected transfer price of VND 2.5 trillion ($94.97 million). If achieved, the gross profit from this transaction could be pivotal in meeting the shareholder-approved pre-tax profit of VND 800 billion ($30.4 million).

In a previous move earlier in 2023, Kido sold a 24% stake in Kido Frozen Foods, yielding over VND 1.05 trillion ($40 million) recorded as financial revenue. However, this deal was not without its complications—it faced hurdles as the board’s decision to sell 24.03% of Kido Frozen Foods to Nutifood Investment Company was rejected by shareholders. This was amid trademark disputes regarding the promotion of the Celeno ice cream brand.

Current Market Position

As of the latest updates, Kido Group’s shares were trading on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange at VND 53,500 ($2.03) per share. With the company’s strategic realignments and the impending stake sale in Kido Frozen Foods, industry watchers and stakeholders are intrigued to see how these maneuvers will play out in paving the way for financial recovery and ensuring the company’s long-term sustainability.

The unfolding narrative around Kido Group not only reflects the complexities of navigating business challenges but also highlights broader themes in the Vietnamese market’s economic landscape amid evolving consumer demands and competitive pressures.