Hong Kong Stock Concept Tracking | High-yield stocks ushered in a boom in layout, and dividend assets are expected to become one of the main long-term investment lines (with concept stocks)
The Zhitong Finance App learned that since the third quarter of 2026, there has been a drastic change in A-share style. Technological growth fluctuated at a high level, but dividend sectors such as banks and coal bucked the trend, and the stock prices of ICBC, CCB, and Bank of China hit record highs one after another. The latest adjustments in public fund positions also confirm this trend: many funds increased their holdings in individual stocks with high dividend characteristics, such as banks, in the third quarter. Dividend assets are undergoing a round of upgrading their positioning from “defensive allocation” to “active attack,” and high dividends are expected to become one of the main long-term investment lines.
Since October, banks, as representatives of dividend assets, have continued to strengthen, and the stock prices of many banks have reached record highs over the past few days. On October 19, ICBC's stock price hit 8.65 yuan in the intraday period, once again setting a new record high. The total market capitalization once again surpassed Changxin Technology and once again became the “market capitalization brother” of A-shares.
It is the largest dividend asset sector with the most stable dividends. In mid-2026, the banking industry's total dividends reached 266.587 billion yuan, ranking first among all industries. Twenty-one A-share banks disclosed their mid-term dividend plans. The total proposed dividend payments exceeded 260 billion yuan. The six major banks uniformly adjusted their dividend ratio from 30% to 31%, and the total proposed dividend payments exceeded 220 billion yuan.
Relevant sources said that in the context of declining interest rates and continuing “asset shortages,” dividend assets can still be used as one of the important types of bottom positions in investment portfolios, and dividend ratio advantages will continue to attract allocative capital. In the short term, in the context of the Federal Reserve's interest rate hike, the technology growth sector, which is more sensitive to the interest rate environment, may be greatly affected, and fluctuations will increase. The dividend sector relies on defensive attributes to have relative benefits.
The public fund's holdings, which have been disclosed in the three-quarter report, confirm this. By the end of the third quarter, Jinxin Smart China's hybrid equity investment ratio in 2025 was 80.23%, down 8.47% from the end of the second quarter. The top ten largest stocks are Industrial and Commercial Bank, Bank of Communications, China CITIC Bank, Industrial Bank, China Mobile, China Construction Bank, Bank of China, Bank of Shanghai, Ping An Bank, and SPD Bank.
The fund significantly increased its holdings in five bank stocks in the third quarter, including ICBC, Bank of Communications, China CITIC Bank, Industrial Bank, and Bank of China. The number of shares held doubled from the end of the second quarter. The A-share prices of ICBC, China CITIC Bank, and Bank of China have all recently hit record highs.
“Compared with the second quarter, the portfolio increased the allocation of other intelligently-related individual stocks with high dividend characteristics, such as telecom operators, and also increased the allocation of some high-dividend individual stocks other than banks and insurance.” Jinxin Smart China's 2025 mixed three-quarter report shows.
Kong Xuebing, manager of Jinxin's Steady Strategy Hybrid Fund, believes that market capital needs to re-examine and screen differences in the attributes of technological growth and manufacturing cycles, and that structural differentiation within the technology sector is inevitable. Short-term ultra-high gross profit obtained by relying more on overseas AI capital expenditure competitions and mature supply chain support may face cyclical fluctuations and market repricing. The fanatical pursuit of short-term boom direction by market capital is expected to weaken and shift to embracing more sustainable growth, and differences in cyclicality and growth at the valuation level are expected to reshape.
Currently, the yield on ten-year treasury bonds has fallen to an all-time low of 1.6% to 1.7%, while the China Securities dividend dividend rate remains at 3.8% to 4%, interest spreads of more than 2 percentage points have formed a strong “bond-like substitution” effect. Long-term funds such as insurance, social security, and pensions continue to allocate stable dividend assets under the pressure of an “asset shortage.” Huatai Securities estimates that the insurance industry has allocated 2.1 trillion yuan of dividend stocks by the first half of the year, and still owes about 1.9 trillion yuan in future allocations.
Meanwhile, recently the market has once again fallen into turmoil, the technology sector continues to adjust, and the appeal of dividend assets has become prominent. Take the low dividend index as an example. Wind data shows that as of October 9, the China Securities Low Volatility Dividend Index rose 0.47% since September. The Shanghai Composite Index fell 4.33% during the same period, and the Shanghai and Shenzhen 300 Index fell 6.66%.
Market analysts believe that the shift of capital to the dividend sector is mainly affected by rising US bond yields suppressing growth stock valuations and compounding the technology sector's early profit market. The flow of capital from high-ranking technology stocks to the undervalued dividend sector reflects the need for short-term risk aversion and style rebalancing.
Fund manager Shachuan of Tianhong Fund said that since this year, the main line of market investment has always revolved around technological growth, and the dividend sector market mainly comes from capital's phased defense demand for the technology sector after a sharp rise. In the long run, in the context of an aging population and gradual development, domestic interest rates may remain low for a long time or even fall further. Due to their relatively stable performance and dividend income, dividend assets are one of the main good long-term investment directions.
Shen Wan Hongyuan released a research report saying that 2026 is a year supported by definitive fundamentals for banks, and it is expected that listed banks will continue the trend of “improved revenue and steady profit growth” in the third quarter. Combined with many banks' mid-term dividends in the fourth quarter, and the expected return of patient capital, etc., this is favorable catalytic, and banks are optimistic. Currently, the high-quality urban commercial banks and major state-owned banks continue to grasp the fundamentals and improve, and maintain the judgment that “major state-owned banks will steadily raise the sector's valuation center, and high-quality urban commercial banks will take the lead in standing at 1 times PB” unchanged.
China Merchants Fund said that dividend assets are undergoing a round of upgrading their positioning from “defensive allocation” to “active attack.” During the October 3 quarterly report window, technological growth may be phased. The “dividend bottom+technology satellite” barbell strategy is still the current relatively balanced allocation idea.
Related concept stocks
ICBC (01398): Daiwa released a research report stating that it covered ICBC for the first time and gave it a “holding” rating. The target price for H shares was HK$7.8. The bank pointed out that ICBC is the world's largest bank in terms of total assets and is regularly ranked as the financial institution with the highest profitability, but the current valuation multiplier of 0.55 times the 2026 market account ratio already reflects its capital advantage.
CCB (00939): Daiwa released a research report stating that it covered CCB for the first time and gave it a “buy” rating. The target price was HK$11.05, and regarded it as the first choice for the Chinese banking industry. The bank pointed out that CCB is the second-largest bank in China in terms of total assets. Driven by capital cost advantages and handling fee contributions, its return on shareholders' equity in 2025 was 10.1%, ranking second among state-owned banks.
Bank of Communications (03328): Announces 2026 interim results, with net operating income of 142,540 billion yuan, up 6.77% year on year; net profit (attributable to shareholders of parent company) of 47.884 billion yuan, up 4.04% year on year; and earnings per share of 0.52 yuan.
Bank of China (03988): Morgan Stanley released a research report stating that it gave the Bank of China an “increase in holdings” rating. It is expected that the Bank of China will benefit from stabilizing net interest spreads and resilience in offshore profit margins to maintain steady revenue and profit growth; and with its extensive global network and international business, it is expected to seize cross-border business growth and opportunities for Chinese enterprises to go overseas. According to the bank, the Bank of China expects a dividend rate of about 4.9% in 2026, which is attractive, and major insurance companies hold relatively low shares, and may be able to provide additional valuation support when institutional demand for high-interest financial stocks rises.