According to JPMorgan, the average dividend yield of Hong Kong-listed mainland insurance companies is expected to reach 6.4% this year.
Zhītōng Cáijīng APP learned that JPMorgan released a research report stating that China Life Insurance (01339) and PICC Property and Casualty (02328) announced the distribution of interim dividends this year. China Life Insurance is directly owned by the Chinese government, with the Ministry of Finance holding 60.84% of the shares and the National Council for Social Security Fund holding 12.68% of the shares. The bank believes that similar steps taken by China Life Insurance are reasonable.
The report pointed out that faster-than-expected recovery of life insurance business, strengthened capital management policies and product profit margin recovery will offset the potential risk of falling bond yields, and is expected to act as a short-term catalyst for the distribution of interim dividends by mainland insurance companies. JPMorgan rated Ping An Insurance (02318) A-Shares, H-shares, and China Life Insurance (02628) as "shareholding", as well as the top choice among mainland insurance companies.
The bank estimated that the average dividend yield of Hong Kong-listed mainland insurance companies will reach 6.4% this year. However, except for Ping An Insurance, no other mainland insurance companies have provided detailed guidance on shareholder returns for the next 3 years. The bank believes that such guidance is a potential upside risk for the distribution of interim performance by mainland insurance companies.