Lai Sun Development Co (HKSE:00488) Beneish M-Score: -2.91 (As of Aug. 09, 2026)

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HKSE:00488 Lai Sun Development Co Ltd HKSE:00488
34 GF Score
Price HK$0.80
GF Value HK$0.56
Valuation Significantly Overvalued
! 4 Warning Signs
View Full Analysis

What is Lai Sun Development Co Beneish M-Score?

Lai Sun Development Co HKSE:00488 -1.23% 34 Beneish M-Score is -2.91 as of Aug. 09, 2026. GuruFocus rates HKSE:00488 with a GF Score™ of 34/100 and a GF Value™ of HK$0.56 (Significantly Overvalued). The stock has 4 warning signs investors should review. Among 1,677 Real Estate companies, Lai Sun Development Co ranks better than 80.98% on this metric.

The zones of discrimination for M-Score is as such:

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.
An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Good Sign:

Beneish M-Score -2.91 no higher than -1.78, which implies that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

The historical rank and industry rank for Lai Sun Development Co's Beneish M-Score or its related term are showing as below:

HKSE:00488' s Beneish M-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -2.91   Med: -2.26   Max: 1.2
Current: -2.91

During the past 13 years, the highest Beneish M-Score of Lai Sun Development Co was 1.20. The lowest was -2.91. And the median was -2.26.

Lai Sun Development Co Beneish M-Score Historical Data

* Premium members only.

The historical data trend for Lai Sun Development Co's Beneish M-Score can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

Lai Sun Development Co Beneish M-Score Chart

Lai Sun Development Co Annual Data
Trend Jul16 Jul17 Jul18 Jul19 Jul20 Jul21 Jul22 Jul23 Jul24 Jul25
Beneish M-Score
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -2.40 -2.58 -2.12 -2.47 -2.91

Lai Sun Development Co Semi-Annual Data
Jul16 Jan17 Jul17 Jan18 Jul18 Jan19 Jul19 Jan20 Jul20 Jan21 Jul21 Jan22 Jul22 Jan23 Jul23 Jan24 Jul24 Jan25 Jul25 Jan26
Beneish M-Score Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 0.00 -2.47 0.00 -2.91 0.00

Lai Sun Development Co Beneish M-Score Competitor Comparison

For the Real Estate - Diversified subindustry, Lai Sun Development Co's Beneish M-Score, along with its competitors' market caps and Beneish M-Score data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.

Lai Sun Development Co Beneish M-Score vs Real Estate Industry

For the Real Estate industry and Real Estate sector, Lai Sun Development Co's Beneish M-Score distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where Lai Sun Development Co's Beneish M-Score falls into.


HKSE:00488
34GF Score
Lai Sun Development Co Ltd HKSE:00488
Beneish M-Score is just one metric. See GF Score™, valuation, warning signs, and more.
View Full Analysis

Lai Sun Development Co Beneish M-Score Calculation

The M-score was created by Professor Messod Beneish. Instead of measuring the bankruptcy risk (Altman Z-Score) or business trend (Piotroski F-Score), M-score can be used to detect the risk of earnings manipulation. This is the original research paper on M-score.

The M-Score Variables:

The M-score of Lai Sun Development Co for today is based on a combination of the following eight different indices:

M=-4.84+0.92 * DSRI+0.528 * GMI+0.404 * AQI+0.892 * SGI+0.115 * DEPI
=-4.84+0.92 * 0.7996+0.528 * 1.2617+0.404 * 1.0052+0.892 * 0.8166+0.115 * 1.2608
-0.172 * SGAI+4.679 * TATA-0.327 * LVGI
-0.172 * 1.0799+4.679 * -0.048951-0.327 * 1.0432
=-2.91

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Jul25) TTM:Last Year (Jul24) TTM:
Total Receivables was HK$1,113 Mil.
Revenue was HK$4,899 Mil.
Gross Profit was HK$990 Mil.
Total Current Assets was HK$13,896 Mil.
Total Assets was HK$64,228 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was HK$8,815 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was HK$590 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was HK$961 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was HK$18,402 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was HK$11,344 Mil.
Net Income was HK$-2,874 Mil.
Gross Profit was HK$0 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was HK$270 Mil.
 Total Receivables was HK$1,704 Mil.
Revenue was HK$5,999 Mil.
Gross Profit was HK$1,530 Mil.
Total Current Assets was HK$14,770 Mil.
Total Assets was HK$67,422 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was HK$9,297 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was HK$798 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was HK$1,090 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was HK$6,539 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was HK$23,394 Mil.

1. DSRI = Days Sales in Receivables Index

Measured as the ratio of Revenue in Total Receivables in year t to year t-1.

A large increase in DSR could be indicative of revenue inflation.

DSRI=(Receivables_t / Revenue_t) / (Receivables_t-1 / Revenue_t-1)
=(1112.5 / 4898.615) / (1703.799 / 5998.861)
=0.227105 / 0.28402
=0.7996

2. GMI = Gross Margin Index

Measured as the ratio of gross margin in year t-1 to gross margin in year t.

Gross margin has deteriorated when this index is above 1. A firm with poorer prospects is more likely to manipulate earnings.

GMI=GrossMargin_t-1 / GrossMargin_t
=(GrossProfit_t-1 / Revenue_t-1) / (GrossProfit_t / Revenue_t)
=(1529.929 / 5998.861) / (990.177 / 4898.615)
=0.255037 / 0.202134
=1.2617

3. AQI = Asset Quality Index

AQI is the ratio of asset quality in year t to year t-1.

Asset quality is measured as the ratio of non-current assets other than Property, Plant and Equipment to Total Assets.

AQI=(1 - (CurrentAssets_t + PPE_t) / TotalAssets_t) / (1 - (CurrentAssets_t-1 + PPE_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=(1 - (13895.649 + 8814.985) / 64228.301) / (1 - (14769.745 + 9297.037) / 67421.57)
=0.646408 / 0.64304
=1.0052

4. SGI = Sales Growth Index

Ratio of Revenue in year t to sales in year t-1.

Sales growth is not itself a measure of manipulation. However, growth companies are likely to find themselves under pressure to manipulate in order to keep up appearances.

SGI=Sales_t / Sales_t-1
=Revenue_t / Revenue_t-1
=4898.615 / 5998.861
=0.8166

5. DEPI = Depreciation Index

Measured as the ratio of the rate of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization in year t-1 to the corresponding rate in year t.

DEPI greater than 1 indicates that assets are being depreciated at a slower rate. This suggests that the firm might be revising useful asset life assumptions upwards, or adopting a new method that is income friendly.

DEPI=(Depreciation_t-1 / (Depreciaton_t-1 + PPE_t-1)) / (Depreciation_t / (Depreciaton_t + PPE_t))
=(798.262 / (798.262 + 9297.037)) / (589.828 / (589.828 + 8814.985))
=0.079073 / 0.062716
=1.2608

Note: If the Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization data is not available, we assume that the depreciation rate is constant and set the Depreciation Index to 1.

6. SGAI = Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index

The ratio of Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) to Sales in year t relative to year t-1.

SGA expenses index > 1 means that the company is becoming less efficient in generate sales.

SGAI=(SGA_t / Sales_t) / (SGA_t-1 /Sales_t-1)
=(961.486 / 4898.615) / (1090.342 / 5998.861)
=0.196277 / 0.181758
=1.0799

7. LVGI = Leverage Index

The ratio of total debt to Total Assets in year t relative to yeat t-1.

An LVGI > 1 indicates an increase in leverage

LVGI=((LTD_t + CurrentLiabilities_t) / TotalAssets_t) / ((LTD_t-1 + CurrentLiabilities_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=((11344.474 + 18401.884) / 64228.301) / ((23394.064 + 6538.849) / 67421.57)
=0.463135 / 0.443966
=1.0432

8. TATA = Total Accruals to Total Assets

Total accruals calculated as the change in working capital accounts other than cash less depreciation.

TATA=(IncomefromContinuingOperations_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(NetIncome_t - NonOperatingIncome_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(-2874.333 - 0 - 269.716) / 64228.301
=-0.048951

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator. An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Lai Sun Development Co has a M-score of -2.91 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

Frequently Asked Questions Learn more about Beneish M-Score →
What does a Beneish M-Score of -2.91 mean?
Lai Sun Development Co (HKSE:00488) has a Beneish M-Score of -2.91 as of Aug. 09, 2026. The Beneish M-score measures the likelihood of earnings manipulation. View historical data on Lai Sun Development Co and its competitors. According to the industry distribution chart, Lai Sun Development Co ranks #319 out of 1677 companies in the Real Estate industry, placing it in the top 19%.
Is Lai Sun Development Co's Beneish M-Score too high?
Lai Sun Development Co's current Beneish M-Score is -2.91. Based on the distribution chart, Lai Sun Development Co ranks #319 out of 1677 companies in the Real Estate industry, which is in the top quartile — a strong position relative to peers. Overall, Lai Sun Development Co has a GF Score™ of 34/100 and is considered Significantly Overvalued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Lai Sun Development Co's Beneish M-Score compare to competitors?
According to the Real Estate industry distribution chart, Lai Sun Development Co ranks #319 out of 1677 companies for Beneish M-Score. This places Lai Sun Development Co in the top 19% of its industry — outperforming the majority of peers. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Beneish M-Score for a Real Estate company?
A good Beneish M-Score depends on the Real Estate industry context. However, Beneish M-Score should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Beneish M-Score mean?
A high Beneish M-Score can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. The Beneish M-score measures the likelihood of earnings manipulation. View historical data on Lai Sun Development Co and its competitors. Lai Sun Development Co's current Beneish M-Score is -2.91. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Lai Sun Development Co stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Lai Sun Development Co (HKSE:00488) is currently considered Significantly Overvalued. The stock's GF Value™ is HK$0.56, compared to a current price of HK$0.80 — trading 42.9% above its estimated fair value. The current Beneish M-Score is -2.91. Lai Sun Development Co's overall GF Score™ is 34/100 with 4 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Beneish M-Score calculated?
Beneish M-Score is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Lai Sun Development Co (HKSE:00488), the current Beneish M-Score is -2.91 as of Aug. 09, 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.

Is Lai Sun Development Co (HKSE:00488) Overvalued in 2026?

Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Lai Sun Development Co stock appears to be overvalued. The current stock price of HK$0.80 is trading 42.9% above its estimated GF Value™ of HK$0.56. GuruFocus considers Lai Sun Development Co to be Significantly Overvalued.

Key valuation signals for HKSE:00488:

  • Beneish M-Score: -2.91
  • GF Value™: HK$0.56 vs. price of HK$0.80 (42.9% above fair value)
  • GF Score™: 34/100 with 4 warning signs

No single metric tells the full story. See the HKSE:00488 stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.

Lai Sun Development Co Business Description

Other Exchanges LAY3:Germany
Address 680 Cheung Sha Wan Road, 11th Floor, Lai Sun Commercial Centre, Kowloon, Hong Kong, HKG
Lai Sun Development Co Ltd is an investment holding company. Along with its subsidiaries, the company is engaged in various reportable operating segments such as; property development and sales; property investment; hotel operation; restaurant operation; media and entertainment; film and TV programs; cinema operation; theme park operation, and others. The property development and sales segment which derives a majority of its revenue, is engaged in property development and the sale of properties. Geographically, it derives a majority of its revenue from Mainland China and Macau, and the rest from Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, and other regions.
34GF Score

Get the complete analysis for HKSE:00488

Beneish M-Score is just one metric. See GF Value™, 30-year financials, guru trades, warning signs, and more.

HK$0.80
Price
HK$0.56
GF Value