Axis Bank shares jump over 5% after Q3 profit rises 4%

New Delhi (PTI): Shares of Axis Bank on Tuesday jumped over 5 per cent after the firm reported a 4 per cent growth in its December quarter net profit.

The stock surged 5.22 per cent to Rs 1,325.90 on the BSE.

At the NSE, it climbed 5.40 per cent to Rs 1,326.

The stock was the biggest gainer among the Sensex and Nifty firms during the morning trade.

The 30-share BSE benchmark quoted 167.84 points higher at 81,742.04, and the 50-share NSE Nifty traded 80.40 points up at 25,129.05.

Axis Bank on Monday reported a 4 per cent growth in its December quarter net profit to Rs 7,010.65 crore against Rs 6,742.99 crore in the year-ago period.

On a standalone basis, the third-largest private-sector lender's net profit for the October-December period increased to Rs 6,489.57 crore from Rs 6,303.77 crore in the year-ago period.

The bank's core net interest income grew by 5 per cent to Rs 14,287 crore, helped by a 14 per cent loan growth but restricted by a 0.29 per cent compression in the net interest margin at 3.64 per cent.

Its chief executive and managing director Amitabh Chaudhry said that Axis Bank's ambition remains unchanged, and the lender wishes to outpace the system growth in a sustainable manner.

The gross non-performing assets ratio improved to 1.40 per cent from 1.46 per cent in the quarter-ago period, while the overall provisions increased to Rs 2,245.92 crore from Rs 2,155.63 crore in the year-ago period.