Axis Bank Q1 net profit dips 46% to Rs 7 billion, stock falls 2.67%

Private sector lender Axis Bank’s net profit fell 46 per cent to Rs 7 billion during the April-June quarter, as income showed muted growth and expenses rose. The bank had posted a net profit of Rs 13.05 billion a year ago.

For the fourth quarter of the last financial year, the bank posted a net loss of Rs 21.88 billion, the first since its listing.

The bank's net interest income, or the difference between the interest earned and spent, rose 12 per cent on to Rs 51.67 billion year on year.

The bank’s stock closed at Rs 568.45 on the BSE, down 2.67 per cent from its previous close. Results were announced after market hours.
 

Net interest margin (NIM), the difference between the yield on advances and cost of funds, improved to 3.46 per cent, compared with 3.33 per cent in the previous quarter. 

Other income, comprising fee, trading profit and miscellaneous income declined 2 per cent year on year during the quarter. The bank’s asset quality took a hit during April-June. Gross non-performing assets (NPAs), as a percentage of total advances, stood at 6.52 per cent during the quarter, up 149 basis points (1 basis point is one hundredth of a percentage point) from the year-ago quarter. 

It, however, improved on a sequential basis, with GNPAs down 25 basis points from the March quarter of 2017-18.

The bank’s provisions stood at Rs 33.38 billion, 42% higher than a year ago, and less than half of the Rs 71.8 billion in the previous quarter. Advances grew 14% year on year to Rs 4,410 billion as on June 30, 2018, while deposits grew 8% to Rs 4,470 billion.

Capital adequacy ratio (CRAR) stood at 16.57 per cent during the quarter, against 16.36 per cent in the same period last financial year.