Federal Bank Ltd on Monday said its third-quarter net profit rose 32% on the back of higher other income and lower provision. The bank posted a net profit of Rs 440.64 crore for the three months ended 31 December compared to Rs 333.63 crore in the year-ago period. Profit was higher than Rs 412.7 crore estimated by a Bloomberg poll of 15 analysts.
Net interest income, or the difference between interest earned on loans and that paid on deposits, increased 7.21% to Rs 1,154.93 crore from Rs 1,077.29 crore in the corresponding period last year. Other income, which includes core fee income, rose 18.03% to Rs 407.86 crore in the three months from Rs 345.55 crore a year ago.
Gross non-performing assets (NPAs), as a percentage of total advances, were at 2.99% in the December quarter compared with 3.07% in the September quarter and 3.14% in the year-ago December quarter.
Provisions during the quarter decreased 15.39% to Rs 160.86 crore as against Rs 190.12 crore in the year-ago quarter. In the July-September quarter, the bank had set aside Rs 251.77 crore in provisions.
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