SHARES of Ping An Insurance were unchanged yesterday after it forecast 2007 profit that was within expectations.

The Shenzhen-based insurer ended at 72.48 yuan (US$10.07) yesterday in Shanghai, down 0.07 percent. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.87 percent to 4,457.94.

The country's second biggest insurer said in a preliminary statement to the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday that it expects its 2007 net profit to more than double. Its 2006 net profit totaled 7.34 billion yuan, with earnings per share at 1.19 yuan.

Ping An's profit forecast for 2007 was not a surprise as insurers' equity returns have soared in line with the booming stock market last year, said Zhang Xi, a China Galaxy Securities Research analyst.

"Ping An's profits is within expectations, that's why it (the forecast) didn't act as a shot in the arm for the shares," Zhang said.

The Shanghai Composite Index gained more than 80 percent last year after soaring 130 percent in 2006, giving insurers juicy returns on their equity investments. Their investment returns topped a record 279.2 billion yuan last year, more than the total of the previous five years.

Zhang advised selling Ping An shares in the short term as the insurer is expected to encounter more fluctuations.

The insurer said last week it plans to issue up to 1.2 billion new yuan-backed A shares, or 14 percent of its expanded capital.

Ping An also plans to sell as much 41.2 billion yuan of six-year convertible bonds with detachable warrants.