Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) shares rose slightly by 0.41% today after the first shareholder reduced its holdings by nearly 8.3 billion yuan.
On March 1, Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) announced that the bank’s largest shareholder, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, transferred 10% of its equity to Hangzhou urban investment and Hangzhou stock exchange. After the transfer, Hangzhou Finance Bureau, the former second largest shareholder, became the largest shareholder passively and remained the actual controller.
In the opinion of most experts, although the largest shareholder of Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) changed its ownership, this change is a normal equity transfer transaction and does not need to be over interpreted. After the transfer, with the increase of the shareholding proportion of state-owned assets in Hangzhou, it will be more conducive to the subsequent development of the bank.
reduction and cash out of nearly 8.3 billion yuan
On March 1, Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) issued a suggestive announcement on the signing of the share transfer agreement and changes in equity by shareholders, saying that the largest shareholder, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, signed an equity transfer agreement with Hangzhou urban construction investment group (hereinafter referred to as “Hangzhou urban investment”) and Hangzhou transportation investment group (hereinafter referred to as “Hangzhou transportation investment”) on the evening of February 28, The Commonwealth Bank of Australia transferred 5% of its shares to the above two institutions, totaling 593.6 million shares.
The announcement said that after the equity change, Hangzhou Finance Bureau will “passively” become the largest shareholder of the bank, but the change will not lead to the change of controlling shareholder and actual controller. Hangzhou Finance Bureau is still the actual controller of the company, and the company still has no controlling shareholder.
Before this transaction, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia held 923 million shares of the bank, accounting for 15.57%, all of which were circulating shares. After the transfer, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia will retain Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) 556% of the shares and promise to lock up the remaining shares for at least three years.
For the transferee Hangzhou urban investment and Hangzhou Jiaotou, the shares held shall not be transferred within 5 years from the date of completing the share transfer registration Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) said that the equity transfer still needs the approval of the qualification of the transferee shareholder by the regulatory authority, the compliance confirmation of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and the transfer registration and other procedures in China Clearing Shanghai Branch, which will be disclosed in the future.
Overall, according to the transfer price of Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) per share agreed by all parties, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia will reduce its holdings and cash out by 8.275 billion yuan.
It is understood that the Commonwealth Bank of Australia is a foreign strategic investor introduced by Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) in 2005, and participated in the capital increase and share expansion of the bank in 2009 and 2014. Previously, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia has long held the position of Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) largest shareholder.
market performance is relatively stable
Although the largest shareholder of Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) changed ownership, the market reacted positively to the equity change.
On March 1, Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) shares closed at 14.55 yuan, up 1.61%, although the intraday decline reached 2%; On March 2, Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) closed at 14.61 yuan, up 0.41%.
The reporter of the international finance news learned from various interviews that the change of Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) largest shareholder is generally regarded as a normal equity transfer transaction by the market. At the same time, with the addition of new shareholders of state-owned assets, it may even be beneficial to its future development.
As for the reduction of Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) former largest shareholder Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Guo Shiliang, an independent financial commentator, believes that it may be related to capital operation and the need to lock in profits, or to the adjustment of foreign shareholders’ own operation. The company can improve its own cash flow by reducing and withdrawing some funds, or make other investment plans, Improve the effective utilization of funds.
It is worth mentioning that Tianfeng Securities Co.Ltd(601162) and Minsheng securities have also issued research reports in recent two days to maintain the “buy” rating of Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) .
In addition, Minsheng securities also pointed out in the research report that the operating pressure of Commonwealth Bank of Australia has increased due to the slowdown of Australian economic growth. The bank’s management also said that part of the reason for this equity transfer is that it will focus more on the local banking business of Australia and New Zealand in the future. At the same time, as the Commonwealth Bank of Australia still holds Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) 556% of the shares and promises not to dispose of the remaining shares within three years, the institution believes that this reflects the Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s confidence in Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) ‘s operation.
Through this reduction, the shareholding proportion of state-owned assets in Hangzhou has increased, which provides a stable expectation for Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) ‘s equity structure. The improvement of state-owned assets means that it can further deepen local cooperation. The reduction of foreign shareholders does not need to be over interpreted. After the share transfer, it is conducive to the stability of the subsequent bank’s equity structure, the pain of short-term reduction, but conducive to the healthy development of the medium and long term. Guo Shiliang said.
In addition, the data show that in the first three quarters of 2021, Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) achieved an operating revenue of 22.377 billion yuan, an increase of 19.97% over the same period of last year, and realized a net profit attributable to shareholders of the company of 7.036 billion yuan, an increase of 26.16% over the same period of last year. By the end of the third quarter of 2021, the bank’s non-performing loan ratio was 0.9%, which had decreased for 19 consecutive quarters, and the provision coverage ratio further exceeded 559.42%, ranking first among A-share listed banks. By the end of the third quarter of 2021, the total assets on Bank Of Hangzhou Co.Ltd(600926) balance sheet had reached 1.33 trillion yuan, ranking the top seven among China’s urban commercial banks.
