15 Major Banks Distribute Over 570 Billion in Dividends! How to Choose Based on Dividend Yield, Stock Price, and Fundamentals

While the A-share market is still debating endlessly how the “second half of the bull market” will unfold, banks have long been putting investors at ease with a string of dividend numbers. As 2025 annual reports of listed banks are disclosed one after another, dividend plans from six state-owned banks and nine A-share listed joint-stock commercial banks have officially been unveiled. The 15 banks together will distribute more than RMB 570 billion in cash dividend “red envelopes,” demonstrating the industry’s earnings resilience with hard cash. Behind the “big handout” dividends is the growing investment value of the banking sector. The 15 banks average dividend yield of over 4.4% has outperformed the returns of bank deposits and wealth-management products. In 2025, as the banking sector moved higher with volatility, Agricultural Bank saw a rise of more than 52% year-over-year; Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and Pudong Development Bank both rose by over 20%; and many banks’ stock performances were impressive. Faced with these generous “red envelopes,” how should investors make their choices? And how can they precisely capture the investment opportunities within them while avoiding potential risks?

Total “red envelopes” exceed RMB 570 billion

As the A-share market moves forward amid fluctuations, bank stocks with high dividends and low volatility have always been the steadiest “anchor” in the eyes of capital. The 15 large and mid-sized listed banks delivered a total dividend of RMB 576.48B for the full year of 2025. In this “real cash” dividend list, it is not only bank earnings resilience that is revealed, but also the “easy money” code for ordinary investors to profit while lying back.

Opening this “dividend catalog,” in terms of scale, the first tier is clearly the state-owned giants. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China sits firmly atop the “dividend champion” board with a total dividend of RMB 110.59B, continuing its consistent steady style. China Construction Bank follows closely with RMB 101.68B; Agricultural Bank of China and Bank of China are ranked third and fourth with RMB 87.32B and RMB 72.92B, respectively. From the dividend payout ratios of the six state-owned banks, they generally maintain a payout intensity of 30% or even higher.

In 2025, the six state-owned banks combined distributed more than RMB 420 billion in dividends, accounting for over 70% of the total dividends of the 15 banks—an unquestionable “cash cow.” Behind this “scale advantage” are the massive asset bases of the state-owned giants and a stable earnings foundation. In 2025, all of the six major banks achieved positive growth in both revenue and net profit, with total net profit exceeding RMB 1.4 trillion.

Unlike the “march in step” of the state-owned giants, the dividend landscape of joint-stock banks shows clear differentiation. China Merchants Bank leads among joint-stock banks with a total dividend of RMB 14k; its dividend payout ratio of 35.34% is also among the top in the 15 banks, continuing the high-return tradition of the “king of retail.” Citic Bank’s dividend amount increased by RMB 50.84B year over year; its payout ratio rose from 30.5% at the end of 2024 to 31.75%. Industrial Bank and Huaxia Bank also saw steady growth in dividend amounts, continuously increasing payout strength. However, against the backdrop of earnings pressure at some listed joint-stock banks, the dividend scale of several banks has also declined.

Wang Hongying, Dean of the Institute of Financial Derivatives Investment Research (Hong Kong), pointed out that, in terms of structural classification, large banks maintain dividend ratios at a high level by leveraging their scale advantages and innovations in diversified fee-based businesses; the differentiation among joint-stock banks reflects differences in operating strategies.

Dividend yield, stock price, and dividends need to be considered together

For investors, “more dividends” does not automatically mean “more profit.” Only by combining dividend level, stock price gains, and dividend yield can you properly judge the core measure of value for money.

Among them, dividend yield is an important indicator for investors to assess the long-term investment value of listed companies, and it is also a key reference standard for selecting income-oriented stocks. The calculation method is: dividend yield = cash dividend per share / current price of the stock × 100%.

According to Wind data, as of the end of 2025, the average dividend yield across the 15 listed banks was 4.41%. Of these, six banks had dividend yields above 5%: Huaxia Bank, Everbright Bank, Ping An Bank, Minsheng Bank, CMB (Zhejiang) Bank, and Industrial Bank. Their dividend yields were 5.9%, 5.42%, 5.24%, 5.17%, 5.13%, and 5.03%, respectively. China Merchants Bank, Citic Bank, and Bank of Communications also had dividend yields above 4%.

Comparing with bank deposit rates and wealth-management product returns, currently the net value performance of one-year bank wealth-management products generally sits between 2.2% and 3%. Most mainstream R2-rated fixed-income products are in the range of 2.6% to 2.8%. Meanwhile, one-year time deposit rates are generally low. Many state-owned and joint-stock banks follow the 1.1%–1.15% standard. The rate for large-denomination certificates of deposit is slightly higher, typically around 1.2%.

As for stock price trends, since 2025, A-share bank stocks overall have shown a pattern of moving up with volatility—rising first, then weakening, and subsequently repairing—followed by an upward trend. In this round of market activity, Agricultural Bank even surged by 5.17% on a single day; during the session, its intraday high touched 7.55 yuan, setting a new historical record. Its total market value reached RMB 2.55 trillion, first surpassing Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to top the market value ranking for the banking sector. Wind data shows that in 2025, Agricultural Bank ranked first among listed banks with a gain of 52.66%. Pudong Development Bank and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China both recorded year-over-year gains of over 20%. Citic Bank, Industrial Bank, China Construction Bank, China Merchants Bank, and others saw year-over-year gains in the 10%–16% range.

The logic behind this rally in bank stocks differs from the past model that relied on an economic recovery and strong credit demand. In the context of an “asset shortage,” insurance capital has continued to increase its holdings of bank stocks and has triggered the share-purchase-and-influence mechanisms multiple times. A consensus has also gradually formed among ordinary investors: buying bank stocks is equivalent to allocating to high-yield fixed-income products.

However, since this year began, with volatility in the stock market, A-share listed banks have also entered a period of consolidation and adjustment. In the first part of the year, among 42 listed banks, more than half saw their stock prices fall overall. In particular, stocks that led gains last year—such as Pudong Development Bank—are also near the top of the decline rankings this year.

Wu Zewei, a special research associate at SuShang Bank, said that dividend yield equals dividend payout ratio divided by price-to-earnings ratio; the stock price equals EPS multiplied by the price-to-earnings ratio. Dividend yield and stock price changes show an inverse relationship. From this perspective, dividend yield is more suitable for reviewing history than for predicting the future. That is because the past purchase cost has already been fixed. We can use dividend yield to roughly measure the stable income level generated by cash dividends after buying the stock that year. But when forecasting the future, it is necessary to avoid falling into the “valuation trap” in which valuation declines lead to rising dividend yields.

Wang Hongying believes that from the perspective of “lying back and earning,” dividend yield is the primary judgment standard. It directly reflects the proportion of income generated relative to the invested principal. Compared with simply being an absolute dividend amount, dividend yield better reflects value for money. Dividend amounts and stock price appreciation/depreciation can serve as secondary reference, but the core still lies in how high the dividend yield is. However, while focusing on return metrics, investors must not ignore fundamental factors of banks—for example, the net interest margin, the scale of non-performing loans, and the provision coverage ratio that reflects risk control capability. Only when these fundamental indicators supporting commercial bank operating quality fall within a reasonable range does discussing high dividend yields, stable dividend payments, and stock price volatility have meaningful value.

Can long-term holding really mean “lying back and earning”?

For the banking industry, which has entered an era of competition for incremental share, sustained dividend returns are not only an important way to reward investors, but also a direct proof of a bank’s earnings quality, capital strength, and operational stability.

At earnings briefings, in response to hot-button issues that investors care about—such as dividend policies, payout ratios, and long-term return plans—many banks’ management teams have given replies.

At the results briefing, Liu Jun, President of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, said, “For the long-term and sustainable healthy development of the capital market, if there is indeed a call in the capital market to adjust the dividend payout ratio upward further, then ICBC, as a bellwether in the market, will urgently respond to what the market needs and what the market wants. In terms of dividend arrangements, we will closely observe changes and demand in the capital market, and respond to everyone’s needs and voices.” Qugang Qu, President of Huaxia Bank, said that in the past three years, the total dividend amount has increased year by year and the dividend payout ratio has risen year by year. In the future, its cash dividend policy will balance regulatory requirements, shareholders’ investment returns, and the needs for the company’s sustainable development. The bank will continue to enhance profitability and maintain a reasonable dividend payout ratio.

For investors, the core logic in choosing bank stocks has also long shifted from “making money from earnings growth in scale” to “making money from dividend payments and valuation repair.” Under the current market environment, banks with high dividends, low valuations, and stable asset quality remain the most cost-effective allocation direction.

In this regard, Wu Zewei mentioned two main screening standards: first, in the past, the dividend yield of the target should have been sufficiently attractive—at least far higher than the yield to maturity of the current 10-year government bond level, providing a sufficient risk premium relative to the risk-free rate. Second, because investors aim to hold long term to enjoy periodic dividends, these targets must have sufficient continuity in their dividend payments.

Wu Zewei further reminded investors that you cannot put all your eggs in one basket. Whether you choose multiple bank stocks or build a diversified portfolio combining equities, bonds, deposits, and more, this is a necessary approach to reduce risk and improve returns.

“From an investor’s perspective, when investing in bank stocks, you should first focus on fundamentals—such as asset size, net interest margin, provision coverage ratio, and non-performing loan ratio. Second, focus on dividend yield, dividend payments, and stock price stability, in order to select suitable investment targets. If you take a conservative approach, dividends from large banks are a preferred choice for long-term investment. For featured small and medium-sized banks with core competitiveness, you can hold a smaller amount.” Wang Hongying said.

Beijing Business Daily reporter Song Yitong

(Editor: Qian Xiaorui)

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