UCO Bank (UCOBANK) Q4 06/07 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Total business reached Rs.112,331.13 crore at 31 March 2007, up 21.62% YoY; net profit rose 60.74% to Rs.316.10 crore.

• Deposits grew 18.91% to Rs.64,860.01 crore and advances rose 25.53% to Rs.47,471.12 crore.

Financial highlights

• Total income increased 21.82% YoY to Rs.5,760.49 crore; interest earned was Rs.5,317.84 crore, up from Rs.4,354.59 crore.

• Operating profit rose 23.91% to Rs.944.76 crore; net profit was Rs.316.10 crore versus Rs.196.65 crore in FY06.

• Interest expense increased 29.92% to Rs.3,623.16 crore; total expenses rose 21.42% and provisions and contingencies were Rs.628.66 crore.

• EPS improved to Rs.3.95 from Rs.2.46; book value per share rose to Rs.27.66 from Rs.24.86.

Outlook and guidance

• FY08 was expected to bring strong economic fundamentals, higher GDP growth and industrial growth above 9%; the outlook also identified Basel II adoption and technology-led competition as challenges.

• FY07 restructuring, CBS rollout and technology-based products were expected to support higher business volumes and improve FY08 performance and profitability.