PNB’s profit more than doubles to Rs 1,127 crore in December quarter

PNB earned a net profit of Rs 506.03 crore in the year-ago period.

New Delhi: Punjab National Bank (PNB) on Thursday reported a two-fold jump in standalone net profit to Rs 1,126.78 crore for the third quarter ended December, as bad loans marginally declined.

The country's second-largest public sector lender had earned a net profit of Rs 506.03 crore in the year-ago period.

However, total income during October-December 2021 declined to Rs 22,026.02 crore as against Rs 23,298.53 crore a year ago, PNB said in a regulatory filing.

On the asset quality front, the bank witnessed slight improvement by cutting its gross non-performing assets (NPAs) as a percentage of gross advances to 12.88 per cent from 12.99 per cent by the same period a year ago.

In absolute value, gross NPAs stood at Rs 97,258.67 crore by the end of December 2021 as against Rs 94,479.33 crore by the year-ago same period.

However, the net NPA ratio rose to 4.90 per cent (Rs 33,878.56 crore) from 4.03 per cent (Rs 26,598.13 crore).

The provisions other than tax and contingencies declined to Rs 3,353.55 crore from the year-ago period's Rs 5,175.99 crore.

The capital-to-risk weighted assets ratio (CRAR) as per Basel-III rose to 14.91 per cent at the end of the December 2021 quarter. Out of this, CET-I stood at 10.99 per cent.

On a consolidated basis, the bank recorded a profit of Rs 1,150.49 crore during the latest quarter as against a profit of Rs 585.77 crore in the same quarter a year ago.

The total income on a consolidated basis declined to Rs 22,275.40 crore, from Rs 23,639.41 crore in the October-December quarter of the previous fiscal.

The consolidated financial results of the Group include financial results of five subsidiaries and 15 associates, it said.

The lender further said the situation continues to be uncertain due to new coronavirus variants and the bank is evaluating the situation on an ongoing basis.

"The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic will impact the bank's results will depend on future developments. Also Read: Budget 2022 Halwa Ceremony: Sweets distributed in FinMin, core staff to undergo lock-in

"The major identified challenges for the bank would arise from eroding cash flows and extended working capital cycles. The bank is gearing itself on all the fronts to meet these challenges," it said. Also Read: Vivo Y75 5G with 5000 mAh battery launched in India: Price, specs, features