BANK OF E ASIA(00023) 海通国际·2025-02-21 08:23Investment Rating - The report maintains an "OUTPERFORM" rating for Bank of East Asia [2] Core Views - The bank's revenue, pre-provision operating profit, and net profit attributable to equity holders increased by +1.1%, +0.3%, and +11.9% respectively in 2024 [3][14] - The bank's dividend per share (DPS) rose by 27.8% year-on-year from HKD 0.54 to HKD 0.69 [3][14] - The net interest margin (NIM) for 2024 was 2.09%, down by 5 basis points year-on-year but up by 6 basis points compared to the first half of 2024 [5][16] - The overall impaired loan ratio increased to 2.72%, up by 3 basis points year-on-year [6][16] - Non-interest income increased by 14.9% year-on-year, driven mainly by trading gains and changes in fair value [8][16] Financial Performance Summary - Net interest income for 2024 was HKD 16,529 million, a decrease of 2.0% from the previous year [2][12] - The bank's return on equity (ROE) improved to 4.0%, up by 0.4 percentage points year-on-year [3][14] - The cost-to-income ratio rose to 45.9%, an increase of 0.4 percentage points year-on-year [8][16] - The bank's total loans increased slightly by 0.2% year-on-year, with Hong Kong loans decreasing by 0.8% and mainland loans increasing by 0.5% [5][16] Valuation - The target price for 2025 is set at HKD 11.80, based on a price-to-book (P/B) ratio of 0.30 times [4] - The estimated net profit attributable to equity holders for 2025 is projected to grow by 7.8% year-on-year [4][12]