21世纪经济报道·2025-07-15 14:23Core Viewpoint - China Life Insurance plans to further reduce its stake in Hangzhou Bank, potentially exiting its investment entirely if the current reduction is successful [1][2]. Group 1: Shareholding Changes - Prior to the current reduction, China Life held 50.79 million shares of Hangzhou Bank, accounting for 0.70% of the total ordinary shares [2]. - China Life initially invested in Hangzhou Bank before its IPO and, after stock splits, held 285 million shares, representing 4.80% of the total ordinary shares [2]. - The company has previously reduced its holdings in 2021 by 55.89 million shares at a price range of 14.6 to 15.6 CNY per share, totaling 843 million CNY, bringing its holdings down to 229 million shares [2]. - In 2023, China Life further reduced its stake by 119 million shares at a price of 12.05 CNY per share, amounting to 1.429 billion CNY, leaving it with 110 million shares [2]. - In 2024, another reduction of 59.30 million shares occurred, with a price range of 11.84 to 14.42 CNY per share, totaling 770 million CNY, resulting in a remaining stake of 50.79 million shares [2]. - Cumulatively, these reductions have allowed China Life to cash out over 3 billion CNY [2]. Group 2: Financial Performance and Dividends - Hangzhou Bank reached a historical high on June 26, with a closing price of 16.92 CNY per share on July 15, yielding a dividend yield of 3.84% based on the latest interim and annual reports [3]. - Currently, there are 284 listed companies with a dividend yield exceeding 4%, indicating that Hangzhou Bank's attractiveness based on dividend yield is relatively low [3]. - Following the completion of the conversion of 15 billion CNY "Hangzhou Convertible Bonds," the bank's total share capital increased from 5.93 billion shares to 7.25 billion shares, which may dilute earnings per share and further decrease dividend yields [3]. - Analysts suggest that there is still potential for mid-year dividends in 2025, driven by regulatory encouragement for increased dividend payouts and the need for financial enterprises to remit profits [4]. - Some banks, including Hangzhou Bank, have already begun to outline mid-year dividend plans for 2025, which were not present in previous years [4]. - It is anticipated that the dividend yield for bank stocks could increase by 0.6 to 1.21 percentage points before January 2026 [4].