National Australia Bank Profit Tops Estimates; Shares Climb
A National Australia Bank Ltd. branch in Sydney, Australia.
Photographer: Brendon Thorne/BloombergTakeaways NEW
National Australia Bank Ltd.’s earnings topped analyst expectations in the first half of the year as the firm’s key unit of lending to businesses grew, despite continued pressure on margins. The stock gained 3.5%.
Cash profit rose 1% to A$3.58 billion ($2.33 billion) in the six months ended March 31, the firm said in a statement on Wednesday. That compared with the A$3.47 billion average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.