Shares of Canara Bank tumbled 3.5 percent on Tuesday, May 09, a day after the bank reported its fourth quarter (Q4) results. The lender's net profit for the said quarter almost doubled to ₹3,175 crore from ₹1,666 crore a year ago, backed by robust loan growth.
During Tuesday’s trade, the stock opened at a price of Rs. 316.50 per share, positively against the previous close of Rs. 313.20. However, during the early trading session, the stock fell to an intraday low of Rs. 302 apiece.
The stock touched a 52-week high of Rs. 341.70 on January 03, 2023 and a 52-week low of Rs. 171.75 on June 20, 2022, indicating that at the current level, the stock is trading over 79 percent above its 52-week low and 9.8 percent below its 52-week high.
It was trading at Rs. 308.15, down by 1.61 percent, at 11:15 a.m., on the NSE.
The stock has gained almost 9 percent in the last one month. However, it has declined over 8 percent year-to-date. In the past one year, the company's shares have increased by nearly 53 percent.
The financial year 2022-23 saw a significant rise in the post-tax profit of the lender, with an increase from ₹6,124.83 crore to ₹11,254.75 crore. During the March quarter, the bank's core net interest income also witnessed a growth of 23 percent, amounting to ₹8,617 crore.
This was attributed to the expansion of the net interest margin to 3.07 percent, along with a 17 percent increase in advances. However, the bank's treasury income faced a 72 percent decline, while the other income witnessed a growth of 7 percent, amounting to ₹4,776 crore.
The bank has shown an improvement in asset quality as its gross non-performing assets ratio has reduced to 5.35 percent. This is a significant improvement from the 7.51 percent ratio reported in the same period last year, and the 5.90 percent reported three months ago.
Subject to the necessary approvals, the board of the bank has recommended a dividend of Rs. 12 per equity share (120%) of the face value of Rs. 10 each for the fiscal year that ended on March 31, 2023.
CEO K Satyanarayana Raju announced that the bank plans to achieve double-digit growth in its overall loan book for the fiscal year 2024. Raju denied that this target is moderation and emphasized the bank's commitment to over-delivering.
Canara Bank, founded in 1906, is a banking company with a market capitalization of ₹55,748.20 crore. Its retail lending operations include education loans, vehicle loans, housing loans and other personal loans.
According to a MintGenie poll, 13 analysts on an average have a ‘BUY’ call on the stock.
