Wing Lee International Holdings (01218) said it bought 1.4 million shares of Bai Fu (01488) on the open market on July 31 for HK$1.288 million, at an average price of HK$0.92 per share, according to ETNet.

After the purchase, the group held 85.228 million Bai Fu shares, or about 5.40% of the company's total issued share capital. Wing Lee said it was positive on Bai Fu's financial performance and outlook, citing the restaurant group's results.

Bai Fu's interim loss narrowed to RMB24.417 million from RMB32.859 million a year earlier. Basic loss per share was RMB0.0155 and no interim dividend was declared. Revenue rose about 9.3% year on year to about RMB1.87 billion.