KARACHI: Habib Bank Limited (HBL) unveiled its 2QCY19 ended June 30, 2019 consolidated net earnings at Rs750 million translating into earning per share (EPS) of Rs0.44 versus Rs3.44 billion EPS Rs2.29 recorded during the corresponding quarter of last year, depicting a significant fall of 78% YoY in profitability.
The earnings arrived well below market expectations owing to higher than estimated FX losses and notable capital loss booked by the bank during the quarter.
As expected, the bank declared an interim cash dividend of Rs1.25/share, taking cumulative payout for the half to Rs2.50/share.
Interest income of the bank rose 55%YoY to PKR59.57bn during 2QCY19. However, interest expense also surged 92%YoY, thereby resulting in 20%YoY expansion in net interest income (NII) during the quarter.
Non-funded income (NFI) of the bank slumped 77% YoY mainly due to considerable FX and capital losses incurred by the bank during 2QCY19. Moreover, operating expenses of the bank also surged 27% YoY which further truncated bank’s bottom-line.