The Zhitong Finance App learned that UBS released a research report stating that it maintained the “buy” rating of CITIC Securities (06030) and lowered the 2024-2026 net profit forecast by 24% to 33% because the bank lowered assumptions about industry trading volume based on market and industry trends since the beginning of the year, and the target price dropped from HK$23.5 to HK$21.7 accordingly.

According to the report, the company's net profit for the first quarter was 5 billion yuan, down 8% year on year. The decline was less than the industry average. The main reason was that the company's IPO market share rose 5 percentage points year on year to 21%; on a high basis, investment income in the first quarter fell only 18% year on year. The bank believes that the company has a long-term competitive advantage in fields such as investment banking and derivatives/asset management.