[ET Net News Agency, 24 July 2020] Morgan Stanley lifted its target price for Ping An
Insurance (02318) to HK$119 from HK$94 and maintained its "overweight" rating.
The research house said Ping An's share price was more defensive than peers in a
downward market earlier this year but has been slightly underperforming peers in recent
rerating, up 19% versus 33% seen at Life peers.
Morgan said Ping An's quality-focused organizational, channel, and product restructuring
have created some short-term uncertainty to its VNB (value of new business) growth, but
investors, in general, agree that the company is making necessary adjustments to position
better for the next growth leg and are confident about its long-term prospects.
The company acknowledged that it would be negatively impacted by Covid-19 as well as the
ongoing internal reform. Morgan cut its VNB growth forecast further from flat growth to 9%
decline for 2020. (KL)