Federal Bank net profit jumped 50% on lower provisions

 

Private sector lender Federal Bank reported a near 50 per cent jump in net profit for the September quarter on lower provisions and improvement in asset quality even as its total income shrunk.

The market gave a thumbs up to the numbers with the shares rising to their 52-week high of Rs 105.6 on BSE. The prices settled at Rs 104.5, which is about 8 per cent higher than the previous close.

The net profit stood at Rs 460 crore compared with Rs 308 crore in the year-ago period. Total income fell about 3 per cent at Rs 3824 crore from Rs 3937 crore.

Operating profit fell by about 9 per cent at Rs 865 crore from Rs 947 crore over the same period. However, a 54 per cent lower provisions at Rs 245 crore helped the net profit surge. Amortisation of the Rs 166 crore of additional liability on account of revision in family pension also helped.

The bank's asset quality improved on a sequential basis with the gross non-performing assets ratio being at 3.24 per cent at the end of September as compared with 3.50 per cent a quarter ago. Its net NPA stood at 1.12 per cent as against 1.23 per cent earlier.

The lender's net interest income, the difference between interest earned and interest expended, rose about 7 per cent at Rs 1,479 crore. Net interest margin for the quarter rose to 3.2 per cent from 3.13 per cent in the year-ago period.

"Our credit cost was negative in this quarter helped by reduced slippages and higher recovery and upgrade," managing director Shyam Srinivasan said.

The lender's gross advances grew 9.7 per cent year-on-year to Rs 1.37 lakh crore while deposits rose at almost the same rate to Rs 1.72 lakh crore.

Its current and savings account ratio to total deposits reached 36 per cent, an all-time high for the bank, Srinivasan said.