Over 90 billion in stock unrealized gains not included in profit! Ping An of China issues latest statement in response to performance growth

On March 27, at the 2025 earnings release conference, Ping An’s Deputy General Manager and Chief Financial Officer Fu Xin unveiled the “investment strength” of this insurance company with equity investments exceeding 1 trillion yuan, revealing that the unrealized gains on stocks not included in net profit exceeded 90 billion yuan! With a stock investment scale of over 1 trillion yuan, 57% of the pre-tax unrealized gains from stocks are classified as FVTOCI and do not count towards profits, directly enhancing net assets.

Additionally, due to the impact of one-off items such as Ping An Health, Financial One Account, Ping An Health Insurance Technology, and Autohome, Ping An’s non-recurring net profit attributable to the parent company for the full year of 2025 was 143.8 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.5%. Diversified channels helped drive NVB growth of nearly 30%, with the non-individual insurance agent channel contributing over one-third, while the bancassurance and community finance channels grew by 138% and 122% year-on-year, respectively.

Ping An Co-CEO Guo Xiaotao responded to reporters’ questions, stating that this year’s investments are about seeking certainty amid uncertainty, with factors such as infrastructure, healthcare and elderly care, and high dividends representing certainty. Regarding gold, he mentioned that Ping An’s investment returns in gold have met expectations, and the company will continue to include it in its asset allocation categories and portfolio strategy, keeping a close eye on these types of assets.

Over 90 Billion Yuan in Unrealized Stock Gains Not Included in Profit

In 2025, Ping An achieved an operating profit of 134.415 billion yuan attributable to shareholders of the parent company, a year-on-year increase of 10.3%; the net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company, excluding non-recurring items, was 143.773 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.5%.

Both operating profit and net profit attributable to the parent company achieved double-digit growth; however, compared to other listed insurance companies, Ping An’s growth rate in net profit attributable to the parent company was not the highest, which needs to be analyzed from a financial accounting perspective.

On March 27, Fu Xin provided clarification at the 2025 earnings release conference. Fu Xin stated that the net profit attributable to the parent company was impacted by one-off items from Ping An Health, Financial One Account, Ping An Health Insurance Technology, and Autohome, and there were also OCI stock gains not included in profit. 57% of the stocks are classified as FVTOCI (measured at fair value with changes recorded in other comprehensive income), contributing pre-tax unrealized gains exceeding 90 billion yuan, which do not count towards profit but are recorded on the balance sheet, directly enhancing net assets.

This figure represents an increase of 30 billion yuan compared to the unrealized stock gains not included in profit reported in last year’s semi-annual report, indicating that Ping An’s stock investment rhythm in the second half of last year continued. By 2025, Ping An’s comprehensive investment return rate reached 6.3%, the highest in the past five years, with an average investment return rate close to 5% over the past decade, exceeding actuarial assumptions.

Fu Xin stated that high-dividend OCI stocks serve as a “ballast” asset, providing stable returns and contributing long-term value. Some unrealized stock gains not included in net profit have bolstered net assets while also supporting dividends. Ping An plans to distribute a year-end dividend of 1.75 yuan per share, plus an interim dividend of 0.95 yuan, resulting in an annual dividend of 2.7 yuan per share, a year-on-year increase of 5.9%, marking nearly a decade of continuous growth.

Diversified Channels Drive High Growth in NVB

It is noteworthy that in 2025, Ping An’s new business value grew nearly 30%, marking three consecutive years of high growth (over double digits). This is attributed to the initial results of diversified channel reforms, with the non-individual insurance agent channel contributing over one-third, and the bancassurance and community finance channels growing by 138% and 122% year-on-year, respectively.

Among them, the individual insurance channel has seen double-digit growth for three consecutive years, while the contribution of the non-individual insurance agent channel increased from 16% in 2023 to 22% and then 34%. Notably, the community finance channel recorded the highest full premium persistency rate for existing clients in nearly a decade, with the annual life insurance product coverage rate being 1.3 times that of the individual insurance industry. By the end of 2025, 333 outlets had been established in 198 cities, an increase of 105 cities and 202 outlets compared to the beginning of the year.

Regarding the bancassurance channel, Fu Xin noted that in 2023, Ping An resumed channels beyond Ping An Bank, achieving a new business value rate of 28.8%, which is 8 percentage points higher than the second-ranked in the industry; the bancassurance channel model under Ping An Bank also achieved the top per capita productivity (exceeding leading foreign insurance companies), top outlet productivity, and leading growth in scale.

Ping An’s property insurance business also performed excellently, with the COR continuing to optimize, especially as new energy vehicle insurance has achieved profitability, with one in every four new energy vehicles choosing Ping An.

Behind the high growth in performance, investors are also very concerned about Ping An’s stock price performance. Fu Xin stated to reporters that recent geopolitical influences have intensified market volatility. Stock price performance can be assessed from several perspectives:

First is the industry, where the life insurance industry has entered a golden development period, and sectors such as comprehensive finance and healthcare are also in significant development stages, laying the groundwork for sustainable growth in the industry over the next 3 to 10 years; second is the company, Ping An is a company with a stable operation, continuous improvements, and high-value growth; third is valuation, gold will eventually shine, and in the past two years, the market and investors have recognized the company greatly, but the company’s valuation is still at a low level, and it is believed that more investors will acknowledge this, and gold will shine brighter.

Investing in Certainty Amid Uncertainty

Ping An Co-CEO Guo Xiaotao discussed the strategic upgrades of Ping An in recent years, namely “comprehensive finance + healthcare and elderly care,” and stated that insurance is currently in an era of homogenization and internal competition, so Ping An needs to build differentiated competitive advantages, with 2026 being Ping An’s service year.

Guo Xiaotao stated that customers, who were previously scattered across various apps, will be integrated into one platform this year, achieving integration of customers, traffic, and data through “returning to simplicity.” With approximately 700 million registered users in China, the monthly active customer count exceeds 90 million. Any app can provide comprehensive financial services, allowing for transactions, claims, and consultations through AI intelligent agents, enabling quick service with a single request.

As an insurance company with equity investments exceeding 1 trillion yuan, how does Ping An invest in a market experiencing severe fluctuations this year? Guo Xiaotao responded to reporters, stating that insurance capital is long-term capital and patient capital. While short-term market fluctuations are under continuous observation, they are not significant; what matters is how to navigate cycles and provide long-term, stable returns. Ping An’s investment philosophy includes “five matches,” which match the asset side with the liability side, including duration matching, cost matching, product matching, economic cycle matching, and regulatory requirement matching.

He stated: “This year there is a great deal of uncertainty, and global capital market volatility is intensifying, but we believe that the overall outlook for the Chinese market is positive throughout the year. Ping An’s investment team has experienced significant cyclical volatility over the past decade, accumulating cross-cycle investment experience and capabilities, and we believe they can navigate cycles during uncertain times and earn stable returns.”

Guo Xiaotao further explained that this year’s investments are about seeking certainty amid uncertainty, with relatively certain assets such as infrastructure, healthcare and elderly care, and high dividends. Furthermore, the investment returns in gold have met expectations, and it will continue to be included in asset categories and portfolio strategies, with ongoing attention to these types of assets.

Formatting: Liu Junyu

Proofreading: Yao Yuan