Askari Bank Posts Profit of Rs. 5.9 Billion in Q3 

Askari Bank Limited (PSX: AKBL) has posted a profit-after-tax (PAT) of Rs. 5.9 billion in 3QCY24, up 4.4 percent over 3QFY24 with earnings per share (EPS) coming in at Rs. 4.13.  During 9MCY24, the bank’s PAT came in at Rs. 14.1 billion, down 3.4 percent over the previous year with EPS coming in at Rs. 9.72.  Interest earned by the bank stood at Rs. 104.5 billion during 3QCY24, up 17.7 percent over 3QCY23 but down 0.4 percent on a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis. The interest expense was up by 17.6 percent year-on-year (YoY) and down 7.5 percent QoQ reaching Rs. 86 billion.   The net interest income of the bank clocked in at Rs. 18.5 billion in 3QCY24, up 17.8 percent YoY. For 9MCY24, the net interest income stood at Rs. 43.4 billion, up 7 percent YoY.   The bank’s non-funded income (NFI) rose by 10.8 percent YoY during 3QCY24, bringing the total for 9MCY24 to Rs. 11.3 billion, an increase of 13 percent YoY. The increase is primarily fueled by a gain on sale of securities, which went up by 6.1x YoY.   The dividend income also rose by 20 percent YoY to settle at Rs. 1.3 billion. While the other income saw a 5.8 percent YoY increase to Rs. 366 million in 9MCY24.   A provisioning charge was recorded in the outgoing quarter, settling at Rs. 1,685 million, this took the provisioning charge for the 9MCY24 to Rs. 1,233 million compared to a provisioning charge of Rs. 690 million during 9MCY23.   The bank’s OPEX increased by 18.0 percent YoY and 2.2 percent QoQ in 3QCY24 clocking in at Rs. 8.8 billion. With this, cost/income stood at 39.9 percent in 3QCY24 against 39.5 percent in 3QFCY23.   The effective tax rate during the quarter under review stood at 48.1 percent compared to 49.6 percent in the same quarter of the previous year.  Story includes input from Arif Habib Limited’s Result Review of AKBL.