Bank of East Asia is down 1.61% Merrill Lynch remains weaker than market rating

The Bank of East Asia (00023-HK) is now down 1.61%, reporting HK $27.55 to 2.3586 million shares, which is currently losing a small market, with the index falling 1.23%. Merrill maintained its weaker-than-market rating, with a target price of HK $15, which the bank believes has a significant downside risk because the sharp rise in the past few weeks has been driven largely by rumours of mergers and the so-called benefits of recent developments in mainland China. The momentum for future earnings growth is expected to slow, and equity returns are unlikely to make it quick to recoup capital costs. East Asian banks ' valuation standards have no advantage over local and regional counterparts, added the report.