Bank of America Securities reiterated a "buy" rating on Tencent (00700.HK), believing that if China's economy recovers or the current weak economic environment persists, Tencent also has good development conditions. The bank slightly lowered Tencent's third-quarter revenue forecast to 166 billion yuan, a 7% year-on-year increase, and adjusted operating profit forecast to 60 billion yuan, a 16% year-on-year increase, with the target price raised from 480 yuan to 517 yuan.

Bank of America Securities stated that if China's macroeconomic conditions improve, they expect Tencent's payment business to benefit from the recovery of the retail market, while its advertising business will also benefit from the recovery of merchants. If the macroeconomic conditions have not improved, the bank also believes that Tencent is defensive because its gaming business has a smaller relationship with the macro cycle, and games are in an upward cycle of products. In addition, the advertising business can increase virtual ad loads and use artificial intelligence to improve ad conversion rates, thereby self-regulating to mitigate the impact of the macro environment. Despite the recent market rebound, Tencent's valuation is still not high, with an adjusted forecast PE ratio of 16 times for the 2025 fiscal year, lower than the historical average level of 18 times since 2023, and close to the median level of 15 times in the China Internet industry.