ICICI Bank posts 33% dip in net

India’s largest private sector lender ICICI Bank on Friday posted a 33.66 per cent dip in net profits for the quarter ended September 2017 slightly below street expectations due to increase in provision against non performing loans.

Its standalone net profit after tax (PAT) stood at `2,058 crore during the July-September period, as compared to `3,102.27 crore in the same period last year.

The lender, which released its numbers post market hours on Friday, however reported a marginal improvement in its asset quality on a sequential basis.

The gross NPA additions declined to `4,674 crore in the September quarter compared to `4,976 crore in Q1FY18 and `8,029 crore in Q2FY17.

Similarly, the net NPAs decreased from `25,306 crore as on June 30, 2017 to `24,130 crore by the end of September 30, 2017.

As a result, its net nonperforming asset ratio declined from 4.86 per cent in June 30 to 4.43 per cent as at the end of September 30, 2017.

The shares of ICICI Bank closed almost on a flat note at `300.95, up 0.57 per cent ahead of its quarterly numbers.

During the quarter, the total domestic advances grew by 13 per cent. “The bank has continued to leverage its strong retail franchise, resulting in a year-on-year growth of 19 per cent in the retail portfolio. The retail portfolio constituted about 54 per cent of the loan portfolio of the bank at September 30, 2017,” it said in a statement.