EBSCN·2024-03-24 16:00Investment Rating - The report maintains a "Buy" rating for both A-shares and H-shares of Ping An Insurance, with current prices at 40.56 RMB and 33.45 HKD respectively [1]. Core Insights - The report highlights that the new business value (NBV) continues to grow well, with a year-on-year increase of 7.8% to 31.08 billion RMB, and a comparable growth rate of 36.2% [5][6]. - The company’s total revenue for 2023 reached 913.79 billion RMB, reflecting a year-on-year growth of 3.8%, while the net profit attributable to shareholders decreased by 22.8% to 85.67 billion RMB [5][7]. - The report emphasizes the improvement in cash dividends, with a per-share dividend of 2.43 RMB, up 0.4% year-on-year, and a cash dividend payout ratio of 37.3% of operating profit, an increase of 7.8 percentage points [5][6]. Summary by Sections Financial Performance - In 2023, the company reported operating revenue of 913.79 billion RMB, a 3.8% increase year-on-year, and a net profit of 85.67 billion RMB, down 22.8% [5][11]. - The operating profit was 117.99 billion RMB, reflecting a decline of 19.7% year-on-year [7][11]. - The NBV for 2023 was 31.08 billion RMB, with a year-on-year growth of 7.8% and a comparable growth of 36.2% [5][6]. Business Segments - Life Insurance: The average productivity per agent increased significantly, with the number of agents decreasing by 26% to 356,000, while the NBV per agent rose by 89.5% to 90,000 RMB [8]. - Property Insurance: The insurance service revenue grew by 6.5% to 313.46 billion RMB, with a combined cost ratio of 100.7%, an increase of 1.1 percentage points [9]. - Banking: Ping An Bank's net profit increased by 2.1% to 46.5 billion RMB, despite a decline in operating revenue [9][10]. Investment and Valuation - The report projects net profits for 2024-2026 to be 102.4 billion, 107.7 billion, and 112.2 billion RMB respectively, with a maintained "Buy" rating for both A and H shares [10][11]. - The current price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio for A-shares is 8.62, while for H-shares it is 6.57, indicating potential for valuation improvement [11].