DBS: Lowering target price of China Pacific to HK$17, reiterating "buy" rating.

DBS released a research report stating that China Pacific's main subsidiary, Pacific Life, saw a 87.5% year-on-year increase in net profit to 3 billion yuan in the first quarter of this year, but investment income and fair value changes plummeted by 93.3% year-on-year, leading to an 18.5% drop in pre-tax profit. Total premium income for the period increased by 1%; considering the low base from the third quarter of last year and the optimization of group channel costs, the bank expects new business value to grow by more than 10% year-on-year. The bank raised its net profit forecast for China Pacific for the fiscal years 2025 and 2026 by 3.3% and 4.4% respectively, to reflect reduced tax expenses; due to the continued low interest rates impacting the company's intrinsic value, the target price was lowered from HK$18 to HK$17, but maintains a "buy" rating, citing effective transformation of the company's product portfolio and a strong outlook for Value of New Business (VNB).