Revenue for the quarter increased marginally to RM1.18 billion from RM1.12 billion a year ago. The profit jump was attributed to higher loan growth and net interest margin expansion.
For H1 FY2023, it posted a net profit of RM854.6 million, marking a 20.8% increase from RM707.6 million in the corresponding period a year ago, buoyed by a rebound in the economy post-pandemic.
The bank declared an interim dividend of six sen per share with a payout ratio of 23%, it said in its filing with Bursa Malaysia today.
Overall expenses also increased by 3.9% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM1.05 billion, with cost-to-income-ratio higher at 44.6%, compared to the previous year of 42.7%. However, normalised expenses remained flat after adjusting for the reversal of excess bonus accruals from the previous year.
Net impairment charge was reduced to RM266.9 million (H1 FY22: RM377.1 million), inclusive of a RM116 million impairment of the Kurnia brand, agent relationship and other assets of AmGen.
Although external headwinds and domestic challenges will weigh on the economic performance in 2023, the bank remains upbeat on delivering strong financial performance throughout FY2023.
It remains committed to growing revenue, rebuilding capital and shoring up liquidity levels while closely monitoring asset quality and exerting cost discipline.
AmBank group CEO Sulaiman Mohd Tahir stated that these results are a clear reflection of their efforts to strengthen its market while managing its asset quality.
“Despite headwinds, we have been able to register strong results due to our solid fundamentals,” he said.
The bank said gross loans and financing increased by 3.6% or RM4.4 billion year-to-date to RM124.4 billion, with diversified growth seen across its business segments.
Loans in wholesale banking grew by RM1.7 billion (an increase of 5.6%), followed by business banking by RM0.6 billion (+3.2%), and retail banking by RM1.9 billion (+2.7%).
At the close of trading today, its share price rose 5 sen to RM4.17, giving it a market capitalisation of RM13.82 billion.