L&T Finance net jumps 28% on higher credit growth

Diversified financial services group L&T Finance Holding today reported a 28 per cent growth in consolidated net profit at Rs 271 crore for the December quarter, helped by strong asset growth and higher fee income.
"Healthy profit growth was led by growth in our focused areas -- wholesale, housing and rural finance --, expense optimisation and also due to higher fee income," Managing Director Dinanath Dubhashi said.
He said the financial services arm of engineering firm L&T posted a 15 per cent growth in the focused businesses, while de-focused segments like commercial equipment, new car loans, commercial vehicles and SME term loans, among others, de-grew 39 per cent in the third quarter ended December 31.

As a percentage of total assets, the de-focused book fell to 5 per cent in the quarter from 9 per cent in the year-ago period.
In the quarter, the company made a voluntary provision of Rs 214 crore. Its cost to income ratio has come down to 25 per cent from 30 per cent.
"We intend to maintain cost controls but at the same time increase investment in digitisation and automation," Dubhashi said.

Gross non-performing assets marginally improved to 4.85 per cent from 4.97 per cent, while net NPA fared better at 3.10 per cent as against 3.89 per cent in the same quarter last year.

In the investment management business, average assets under management grew 40 per cent to Rs 35,191 crore from Rs 25,059 crore last year.
Share of equity assets is at 39 per cent of the total AUM, reached Rs 13,796 crore representing a 34 per cent year- on-year increase from Rs 10,331 crore.
In the wealth management business, average assets under service rose by 37 per cent to Rs 11,471 crore from Rs 8,363 crore last year, with client base grew to near 5,400.
The numbers fired up the company stocks, which jumped almost 4 per cent to Rs 98.15 on the SBE, whose main index Sensex rallied 0.95 per cent.