Axis Bank Q2 net up 18% at Rs 1,611 cr

Higher net interest income and other income led to the growth

Axis Bank, the country's third-largest private sector bank, has reported a 18% rise in net profit to Rs 1,611 crore in the July-September quarter as compare to Rs 1,362 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year, helped by higher net interest income and other income. The net profit was in line with the Street estimates as a Bloomberg consensus estimate for the bank's net profit was Rs 1,610 crore.

However, on a sequential basis net profit was a tad lower by 3% from Rs 1,666.76 crore in the June ended quarter.

The growth in profit was also limited by higher provisions which were up by 87.5% to Rs 725 crore in the September quarter as compared to the June ended quarter. This despite the fact that at the end of the second quarter gross NPA ratio and the net NPA ratio remained unchanged at 1.34% and 0.44%, same at the end of the June ended quarter.

But in absolute terms, gross NPA was up by 4.3% sequentially. NPAs also increased to Rs. 3,613 crore as on September end, 2014 as against Rs. 2,734 crore in the second quarter last year.. Recoveries and upgrades were at Rs 164 crore and write-offs were Rs. 597 crore.

Net interest income or the difference between the interest earned and interest expended was up 20% to Rs 3,525 crore in the second quarter of this financial year as compared to Rs 2,937 crore in the same period last year.

Other income (that includes fee, trading profit and miscellaneous income) for in the second quarter grew by 10% to Rs 1,948 crore as against Rs 1,766 crore during the same period last year.

The share of current and savings account deposits or the low cost deposits was at 40% as on end September this year.

At the end of the September quarter, the bank's capital adequacy ratio was 14.84% (excluding the net profit for the first two quarters of this financial year), according to Basel-III norms, while its tier-I capital adequacy ratio was 11.51%.