Komercni Banka posts bigger 2024 profit, to pay it all as dividend

Komercni Banka as

06/02/2025 06:56

PRAGUE, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Czech lender Komercni Banka
 BKOM.PR  on Thursday proposed paying out all of its 2024 profit
as dividends for the second year in a row and plans to maintain
that policy this year as well.
    The bank, the country's third-largest, reported a 10.4% rise
in 2024 net profit, to 17.2 billion crowns ($709.7 million),
which it proposed paying out in the form of a dividend of 91.30
crowns per share.
    That is higher than the 82.66 crowns per share it paid from
2023 profit.
    "For the year 2025, the board of directors has decided to
maintain the dividend payout policy (foreseeable dividend) at an
exceptional level of 100% of attributable net profit generated
in this year," Komercni Banka said in a presentation.
    The bank introduced a temporary policy of paying out 100% of
its profit a year ago due to strong capital generation. It
generally has paid out 60%-70% of its profit previously.
    The stock ended at 901.50 crowns on Wednesday, having gained
nearly 20% in the past year.
    Komercni Banka's attributable net profit in the fourth
quarter alone jumped 44.4% year-on-year to 4.71 billion crowns,
above analysts' average estimate of 3.85 billion crowns in a
Reuters poll.
    The increase was due to a large year-on-year drop in
provisioning for bad loans and a 5% rise in net interest income
as falling interest rates relieved cost pressures on deposits.
    The bank, majority owned by France's Societe Generale
 SOGN.PA , said it expected its loan portfolio would record a
mid-single-digit percentage growth rate for 2025.
    It expects banking revenue to increase at a
high-single-digit rate, with net interest income rising at a
similar pace.
 
 ($1 = 24.2350 Czech crowns)

 (Reporting by Jason Hovet; Editing by Savio D'Souza)
 ((jason.hovet@thomsonreuters.com;))