Morgan Stanley released a research report stating that China Life's first-quarter profit fell 32% year-on-year, with pre-tax profit declining 40%, primarily affected by stock market volatility. While its performance trailed peers, it was still slightly better than the market's expectation of approximately a 35% decline. Overall, the bank believes the negative factors impacting China Life's earnings have largely been absorbed and expects an improved risk-reward profile in the second quarter, particularly against the backdrop of a stock market rebound in April. The target price is set at HK$37.9 with an "Overweight" rating. The report noted that although China Life's profit decreased 32% year-on-year, its annualized ROE remained at a solid level of 13.1%. The total investment yield fell 0.5 percentage points year-on-year to 2.2%. New business value surged 76% year-on-year, demonstrating very strong performance and significantly outperforming peers, mainly driven by margin expansion.
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