EB Securities: Maintaining the "Buy" rating on Hong Kong Exchange (00388) as active trading drives record high performance for the third consecutive quarter.

EB SECURITIES publishes research report stating that Hong Kong Exchange (00388) is a scarce target with both offense and defense, maintaining a "hold" rating. Since September 24, trading activity in the Hong Kong stock market has significantly increased, and the company's financial performance in the first three quarters of this year has reached a historical high. The current market sentiment remains strong, and the fourth quarter ADT is expected to continue its good growth trend. At the same time, more mainland companies listing in Hong Kong and the continuous return of Chinese concept stocks are expected to bring new trading volume to the Hong Kong stock market. The bank maintains the company's net profit forecast for 2025-2027 at HK$17.3/18.5/19.5 billion, with a current stock price corresponding to a PE valuation of 32X/30X/28X for 25-27. EB SECURITIES' main points are as follows: Trading activity remains high, with revenue and profit reaching record highs for the third consecutive quarter. In the first three quarters of 2025, the company achieved total revenue of HK$21.85 billion, an increase of 36.6% year-on-year, with an increase of 4.1% compared to the first half of the year. The company's net profit attributable to owners in the first three quarters was HK$13.42 billion, an increase of 44.8% year-on-year, with an increase of 5.7% compared to the first half of the year. The company's revenue and profit in the first three quarters reached record highs, mainly due to the continuous increase in trading activity in the Hong Kong stock market, with trading volumes in the spot market, derivative product market, and Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect reaching record highs for the first nine months of the year. The Hong Kong stock market's ADT continues to grow at a high rate, with various trading data reaching record highs for the first three quarters. In terms of market trading data, in the first three quarters of 2025, 1) the daily average trading volume of shares listed on the Stock Exchange was HK$238.7 billion (a new high for the first three quarters), an increase of 132.4% year-on-year, with a 149.9%/21.6% increase in the third quarter year-on-year/month-on-month; 2) the daily average trading volume of derivative products was HK$17.7 billion, an increase of 67.0% year-on-year, with a 59.5%/6.3% increase in the third quarter year-on-year/month-on-month; 3) the daily average trading amount of Northbound and Southbound Trading was RMB206.4 billion and HK$125.9 billion respectively (both reached a new high for the first three quarters), an increase of 67.4% and 228.7%...