Correction: BYD's third-quarter gross margin was a three-year high. The headline previously incorrectly stated a two-year high.

BYD reported a record net profit of RMB 10.41 billion in the third quarter, up 52.59 percent from the second quarter. Gross margin for the third quarter was 22.12 percent, a record high since the third quarter of 2020.

The company reported a record net profit attributable to shareholders of RMB 10.41 billion ($1.42 billion) in the third quarter, an increase of 82.16 percent year-on-year and up 52.59 percent from the second quarter.

BYD's gross margin in the third quarter was 22.12 percent, the highest since the third quarter of 2020. The company's gross margin was 18.72 percent in the second quarter, and 18.96 percent in the same period last year.

BYD reported earnings per share of RMB 3.58 in the third quarter, up 81.73 percent year-on-year.

The company sold 824,001 NEVs in the third quarter, up 52.96 percent year-on-year and up 17.12 percent from the second quarter, according to figures it previously announced.

In the first three quarters, BYD sold 2,079,638 NEVs, up 76.23 percent year-on-year, data monitored by CnEVPost showed.

Earlier this month, BYD released an earnings preview showing that it expected it to post a net profit of between RMB 9.55 billion and RMB 11.55 billion in the third quarter.

After deducting the contribution from BYD Electronic, BYD's average profit per vehicle was about RMB 10,500 in the third quarter, an improvement of about RMB 2,700 from the second quarter, Essence Securities analyst Xu Huixiong's team said in an October 18 research note.

That's an excellent performance, driven largely by scale advantages, the team said.

BYD sold 822,000 passenger cars in the third quarter, a 17.4 percent improvement from the second quarter, bringing a significant drop in average depreciation and amortization per vehicle, the team noted.

With the scale effect, BYD has stronger bargaining power over upstream and downstream companies, driving a sustained upside in profitability, the team said.

In the first three quarters, BYD's revenue was RMB 422.28 billion, up 57.75 percent year-on-year. It reported a net profit of RMB 21.37 billion in the first three quarters, up 129.47 percent year-on-year.

($1 = RMB 7.3165)

BYD averages about $1,440 in profit per vehicle in Q3