Higher costs and weak asset quality pose challenges for PNB Housing

While the company is rebalancing its loan book, higher costs and weak asset quality pose challenges

Having corrected 27 per cent year-to-date, the question is how much downside is ahead for the PNB Housing stock, which fell 3 per cent on Thursday.

Unlike peers such as Indiabulls Housing and Dewan Housing, the financier has been steadier in terms of asset quality and raising capital. With gross non-performing asset (NPA) ratio at less than 1 per cent even in the June quarter (Q1), when its peers saw the number rising above 1.5 per cent, PNB Housing’s show is noteworthy. Likewise, cost of capital contained at 8.4 per cent is also positive, as peers operated over 9 per