Bank of China International: Maintain "buy" rating on PETROCHINA (00857) with target price raised to HKD 12.12.

China CITIC International has released a research report stating that it maintains a "buy" rating for PETROCHINA (00857), raising the assumed dividend payout ratio for 2026 from 45% to 50%. The target price for the H shares has been raised from 11.62 Hong Kong dollars to 12.12 Hong Kong dollars, while the target price for A shares of PetroChina (601857.SH) has been raised from 13.68 Chinese yuan to 14.22 Chinese yuan. The report mentions that PetroChina's net profit in 2025 decreased by 4% year-on-year to 157.3 billion Chinese yuan (the same below), which is in line with the bank's expectations. The growth of downstream businesses roughly offset the decline in profits from upstream businesses. The bank expects the average Brent oil price to increase by 19% year-on-year to $81 per barrel this year, driving a 25% year-on-year growth in profits. Although the Middle East conflict may affect some overseas upstream business and oil and gas supply, the company's vast international trade network will ensure a sufficient supply of oil and gas for downstream operations. PetroChina aims to become a world-class energy and chemical company by 2030, planning to increase ethylene production capacity from 10 million tons per year to 15 million tons, double the production capacity of new materials to 10 million tons, and build a 2 million-ton capacity for bio-based materials.