UnionBank’s earnings decline in Q3

UNION BANK of the Philippines (UnionBank) saw its net profit decline in the third quarter, dragged by lower earnings from trading and other miscellaneous items, which offset an increase in its interest income.

In its quarterly report released on Monday, Aboitiz- led UnionBank said it booked a net income of P2.03 billion in the third quarter, down from the P4.22 billion it recorded in the same period in 2016.

The report showed that the bank’s interest income for the quarter — which includes income from loans and trading and investment securities, among others — rose to P6.2 billion from P4.96 billion in the comparable year-ago period.

Minus expenses for liabilities, UnionBank’s net interest income was at P4.39 billion, up from P3.64 billion the previous year.

However, this increase in interest earnings was offset by a drop in its other income, which totalled P2.18 billion, down from the P5.45 billion booked in the same quarter last year.

The report showed that this was due to a net loss from its sale of trading and non-trading financial assets worth P48.24 million — a reversal of the previous year’s net gain worth P3.83 billion — as well as slight decrease in its fee-based income to P1.13 billion from P1.18 billion.

Meanwhile, the bank’s expenses in the third quarter was mostly steady at P3.43 billion from P3.59 billion.

The third- quarter performance brought UnionBank’s nine-month net income to P6.39 billion, down 21.46% from the P8.14 billion booked in the same period last year.

The report said the bank’s total resources grew by 4.76% to P549.4 billion as of Sept. 30, up from the P524.43 billion reported

as of Dec. 31, 2016, driven by increases in loans and other receivables — net and investment securities at amortized cost.

UnionBank’s total capital funds rose 6.5% to P71.98 billion as of Sept. 30 from P67.59 billion as of Dec. 31, 2016, according to its quarterly report.

The bank’s capital adequacy ratio was at 15.1%. Its net non- performing loan ( NPL) ratio stood at 1.4%, while its NPL cover was at 100.2%.

UnionBank President and Chief Operating Officer Edwin R. Bautista said last week that the bank is expected to “sustain the strong growth” in its net income.

Shares in UnionBank closed at P87.10 apiece on Monday, up by 20 centavos or 0.23% from the Friday’s finish of P86.90 per share.