Zhong Guo Zheng Quan Bao·2025-08-08 07:25Core Viewpoint - China Ping An emphasizes its commitment to shareholder returns through consistent dividend growth and robust performance in its life insurance business, while also focusing on high-dividend and new productivity-related investments [1][2][3]. Shareholder Returns - The board of China Ping An proposed a final cash dividend of 1.62 yuan per share (before tax) for the 2024 fiscal year, totaling 29.334 billion yuan in dividends and a buyback of 103 million A-shares [2]. - The company has maintained an upward trend in annual dividends for over a decade, with cumulative cash dividends exceeding 400 billion yuan since its listing [2]. - The core performance of the company remains strong, with operating profits for 2024 and Q1 2025 showing steady growth, directly linking dividend levels to operating profit metrics [2]. Investment Strategy - The investment strategy of China Ping An is based on the "five matching" principles, which include alignment of cycles, assets and liabilities, returns, risks, and competition [2]. - The company has been actively increasing its holdings in bank stocks, benefiting from early asset allocation during a declining interest rate cycle, leading to superior investment returns [3]. - Future investments will focus on high-dividend and high-return assets, with an emphasis on finding quality "ballast" assets that benefit shareholder returns [3]. Life Insurance Reform - China Ping An has made significant progress in life insurance reform, optimizing its sales agent channels, with 338,000 personal life insurance agents reported as of the end of Q1 this year [4]. - The life insurance business has seen a 34.9% year-on-year increase in new business value, reaching 12.891 billion yuan, with a new business value rate of 32%, up 10.4 percentage points year-on-year [4]. - The agent channel has shifted from a "mass recruitment" strategy to a "high-quality" approach, resulting in improved productivity and income per agent [4]. Technology Empowerment - Artificial intelligence has been integrated across various operations of China Ping An, with an estimated 1.84 billion AI service interactions in 2024, covering 80% of customer service volume [5]. - AI has enhanced risk control and pricing accuracy, while also enabling sales personnel to efficiently meet customer needs through AI tools [5].