The resilience of a financial institution is often hidden in the details of its books. On October 28, Ping An Insurance (Group) Company Of China, Ltd. (ASX: 601318) released its results for the first three quarters of 2026. Facing a complex and ever-changing external environment, Ping An once again delivered a report card anchored in stability, powerfully demonstrating the confidence of a comprehensive financial group to navigate cycles, and clearly signaling to the market that long-term value and shareholder returns are resonating in tandem.
Operating profit is often regarded as the "real money" foundation of an insurance company and the "reservoir" for dividends. In the first three quarters of 2026, Ping An's attributable operating profit reached RMB 125.905 billion, up 8.3% year-on-year, with operating earnings per share of RMB 7.23, up 9.2% year-on-year; attributable net assets stood at RMB 1,044.366 billion, up 4.4% from the beginning of the year. The insurance funds investment portfolio reached RMB 6.83 trillion, up 5.2% from the beginning of the year, with an average net investment yield of 4.8% and a comprehensive investment yield of 4.9% over the past decade. The "double increase" in operating profit and net assets is by no means an isolated set of numbers. It means that Ping An relies on its ability to continuously generate cash flow to support every dividend payment, and uses its steadily thickening asset base to fulfill its promise of "creating returns for shareholders." Stable performance is the foundation for dividends; a solid net asset base makes value more robust. This has become Ping An's greatest confidence in delivering long-term returns to shareholders.
The value of comprehensive finance lies in "multiple engines firing together." With diversified engines working in synergy, Ping An's comprehensive financial advantages have become increasingly prominent. Third-quarter report data shows that Ping An's life insurance and health insurance business operating profit reached RMB 87.238 billion, up 5.7% year-on-year, with the new business value contribution from non-agent channels rising to 36.9%; property insurance original premium income reached RMB 265.215 billion, up 3.5% year-on-year, with a combined ratio of 95.6%, optimized by 1.4 percentage points year-on-year. Notably, the banking and asset management segments have become important growth engines. The third-quarter report shows that Ping An Bank achieved operating revenue of RMB 103.1 billion, up 2.4% year-on-year, and net profit of RMB 39.186 billion, up 2.2% year-on-year, with a non-performing loan ratio of 1.05% remaining stable; the asset management segment has achieved rapid growth for three consecutive years, with profits climbing significantly, gradually becoming a pivotal pillar in the group's profit structure. With nearly 256 million individual customers and over 41.51 million value customers, the pattern of diversified revenue and multi-polar support makes Ping An's growth more balanced and more resilient to risk.
In a period of declining interest rates, high-dividend assets are highly favored by capital. One noteworthy perspective is that Ping An holds a large number of bank stocks, making it both a beneficiary of high dividends from bank stocks and, by virtue of its own solid performance and consistently stable dividends, a high-dividend "quasi-bank stock" in the eyes of the market. The two mutually reinforce each other, becoming a unique footnote to Ping An's long-term value.
Under the "comprehensive finance plus healthcare and elderly care" strategy, Ping An's healthcare and elderly care services continue to deepen. In the first three quarters, Ping An achieved health insurance premium income of RMB 130.5 billion, of which medical insurance premium income reached RMB 62.9 billion, up 7.1% year-on-year. Currently, AI doctors can accurately diagnose over 11,300 diseases, with an AI doctor-assisted diagnosis and treatment accuracy rate of 96%, and an AI multi-disciplinary consultation and treatment plan accuracy rate for complex diseases of nearly 90%; as of September 30, Ping An has partnered with over 38,000 domestic hospitals, achieving 100% cooperation coverage with China's top 100 hospitals and Grade 3A hospitals. 2026 is Ping An's "Service Year." By deepening AI implementation, Ping An is comprehensively enhancing customer experience, creating quick services that can "get things done with one sentence," and upgrading global emergency rescue services that can "respond with one button." The deepened implementation of "AI in ALL" has also accelerated the feedback of business value.
A review of this earnings report reveals a clear and firm signal: Ping An possesses both the operational resilience to navigate cycles and the responsibility to continuously give back to shareholders. As the healthcare and elderly care strategy advances in depth, AI and other technologies penetrate comprehensively, and the comprehensive financial ecosystem continues to deepen, Ping An's growth momentum has shifted from "scale-driven" to "value-driven." The quality and sustainability of its performance and dividends are expected to reach new heights in the future, giving back to society, shareholders, and customers with more resilient growth.
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