KUALA LUMPUR: Hong Leong Bank Bhd posted earnings of RM847.04mil in the first half ended Dec 31, 2015 after the inclusion of a one-off mutual separation scheme (MSS) of RM172mil.
The bank’s group managing director and CEO Domenic Fuda said on Tuesday that excluding the MSS in December 2015, the group’s business as usual (BAU) net profit would be RM978mil. Net profit was RM1.099bil a year ago.
He said the earnings were underpinned by lower write-backs of loan impairment allowances coupled with lower contribution from its associates.
“Notably, the BAU operating profit for the December 2015 quarter recorded a respectable 4.7% improvement against the previous quarter amidst a challenging macroeconomic environment on both the domestic and external front,” he said.
Its revenue in H1 was up 2.88% at RM2.096bil compared with RM2.038bil a year ago.
In the second quarter, its earnings were RM344.08mil compared with RM551.60mil a year ago. Its revenue rose 4.9% to RM12.073bil from RM1.023bil.
Earnings per share were 19.43 sen compared with 31.24 sen. It declared an interim dividend of 15 sen a share similar to a year ago.
