Merrill Lynch maintained the purchase rating of Tianjin Development (0882.HK); lowered the target price from HK$4.3 to HK$4.1. Previously, the expected profit for this year and next two years was lowered by 22% and 21% respectively, mainly because the contribution of Tianjin Port Development (3382.HK) to its net profit decreased, but the divestment of the toll road business would help improve future performance, as this move would eliminate internal competition. Merrill Lynch expects that shareholders of Tianjin Development will benefit in the long term, thus driving stronger stock prices. According to the expected results for 2009, the current price-earnings ratio and net market ratio corresponding to the stock price are 7.6 times and 0.4 times, respectively; the valuation is at the lowest level among enterprise group stocks tracked by Merrill Lynch. The stock fell 6.56% yesterday to close at HK$3.42.