Axis Bank gains as lender’s Q3 profit zooms three-fold, beats estimates

NEW DELHI – Shares of Axis Bank climbed 1.6 per cent in early trade Tuesday as the private lender’s consolidated net profit for the December quarter zoomed nearly three-fold to Rs 3,973 crore, as the money set aside for any reverses on loans reduced to nearly a third of the year-ago period.

The third-largest private bank in India reported a profit after tax of Rs 3,614.24 crore. The bank’s scrip rose to a high of Rs 715.60 against Rs 704.35 at the previous close on the BSE.

The profit was significantly higher than the analyst estimate of Rs 3,150 crore in an ETNow poll. The bank said Net Interest Income (NII) grew 17 per cent year-on-year (YoY) and 10 per cent sequentially to Rs 8,653 crore.

Fee income grew 15 per cent YoY and 3 per cent QoQ to Rs 3,344 crore. The trading profits and miscellaneous income for the quarter stood at Rs 367 crore and Rs 130 crore, respectively.

Overall, non-interest income clocked in at Rs 3,840 crore, up 31 per cent YoY and 1 per cent QoQ. The operating profit for the quarter grew 17 per cent YoY and 4 per cent QoQ to Rs 6,162 crore.

“As part of our digital strategy, we continue to focus on ‘OPEN’ Banking initiatives to enhance user experience through constant innovation in our offerings to both retail and corporate banking customers. In retail, we continue our growth focus, with the economy turning around and the limited impact of the virus. We are optimistic about the future and plan to leverage every sustainable growth opportunity that is available to us,” Amitabh Chaudhry, MD & CEO, Axis Bank, was quoted as saying in reports.