HDFC Bank shares slip 3% as Q4 numbers fall short of expectations

NEW DELHI: Shares of HDFC Bank dropped 3.4 per cent in early trade Monday as investors were unimpressed with the lender’s performance in the fourth quarter of the previous financial year.

The lender, which is India’s largest private bank by market capitalization, reported a 23 per cent jump in standalone net profit to Rs 10,055.20 crore for the March quarter.

The net profit was lower than Rs 10,200 crore predicted by an ET NOW poll pf analysts.

HDFC Bank’s share price slid to a low of Rs 1,415.75 as against Rs 1,464.85 at previous close on the BSE.

The bank’s net interest income also failed to meet Street expectations.

The NII, which is the difference between the interest income a bank earns from its lending activities and the interest it pays to depositors, rose 10.2 per cent to Rs 18,872.70 crore from Rs 17,120.20 crore in the year-ago quarter. ET NOW poll estimated NII figure at Rs 19,400 crore.

Net interest margin (NIM) stood at 4 per cent on total assets and 4.2 per cent based on interest-earning assets. NIM for the December quarter stood at 4.2 per cent and 4.1 per cent in the year-ago quarter.

Asset quality, however, improved, with gross non-performing assets as a percentage of total advances at 1.17 per cent compared with 1.26 per cent in the December quarter and 1.32 per cent in the year-ago quarter. Total provisions were 182 per cent of the gross NPAs as of March 31.

The bank's advances were up 20.8 per cent for the quarter at Rs 13,68,821 crore. The bank said it continued to add new liability relationships at a robust pace of 24 lakh during the quarter. Liquidity coverage ratio, it said, stood at 112 per cent, well above the regulatory requirements.