Analysis of Popularity Reasons and Investment Value Evaluation of China Merchants Bank (600036.SH/3968.HK)

As a leading joint-stock commercial bank in China, China Merchants Bank has recently become the focus of market attention due to multiple factors: strong business expansion, prominent defensive characteristics of the banking sector, and significant results from digital transformation [0].

• In the first half of 2025, newly issued corporate loans amounted to RMB 279.105 billion, a year-on-year increase of 47.96% [1]
• Net profit in the third quarter increased by 42.11% year-on-year, and profitability continued to improve [0]
• Return on equity (ROE) was 12.1% and return on assets (ROA) was 1.2%, both leading the industry [0]

• The current price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of the A-share (600036.SH) is about 8.31 times [4], and the price-to-book (PB) ratio is about 0.9 times [0], with a relatively reasonable valuation
• The current stock price of the Hong Kong share (3968.HK) is about HK$51.85 [3], and the average analyst target price is HK$55.78 [0]
• The dividend yield is 4.22% [0], which has defensive investment value

• The stock price has risen by 33.75% year-to-date [0], with a 1-year return of 46.72% [0], significantly outperforming the Shanghai Composite Index
• The 52-week price range is RMB 34.20 to 56.75 [1], and it is currently at the upper end of the range

• The banking sector has continued to strengthen in 2025 and has become one of the top choices for defensive investment [5]
• Against the background of sector rotation, low-valued blue-chip bank stocks are favored by institutions [6]

China Merchants Bank has high investment attractiveness due to its strong financial performance, reasonable valuation, first-mover advantage in digital transformation, and defensive characteristics of the sector. Its performance growth is significantly higher than the industry average, and its valuation does not excessively overdraw growth expectations, so it is worthy of continuous attention [0]