China Life Insurance (LFC) saw first quarter income rise 55% and is expected to grow earnings by 39.19% in 2009.
Company Description
China Life Insurance is China’s largest life insurance company. It provides individual and group life insurance and accident and health insurance. With its network of agents, it is able to reach all provinces and areas in China compared to its competitors which have reach only in major cities.
Bullish on 2009
China Life saw first-quarter net income climb 55% year over year as investment income rose due to a rebound in the Shanghai stock market. China Life is one of China’s largest institutional investors.
Covering analysts are bullish on the company for the full year. 2 out of 3 covering analysts raised 2009 estimates in the last 30 days with the consensus rising 5 cents to $2.30 per share. 1 of those analysts raised in just the last week.
Growth
Analysts expect year-over-year earnings growth in 2009 of 39.19% which is much higher than the industry average of 3.80%.
Five year average growth rates are expected to be 24.25%, also above that of the industry average of 11.30%.
Income
The company pays a dividend with a current yield of 2.40%.
Fundamentals
China Life Insurance is a Zacks #2 Rank (buy) stock. It is trading with a forward P/E of 24.51. The company has a solid 1-year return on equity (ROE) of 22.99%.
The stock has been volatile. See the 6-month chart below:
