National Bank beats Q3 profit expectations

National Bank of Canada topped expectations as it reported its third-quarter profit rose to $839 million.

The Montreal-based bank said Wednesday the profit amounted to $2.36 per diluted share for the quarter ended July 31, up from $602 million or $1.66 per diluted share a year ago.

Revenue totalled $2.3 billion, up from $2.0 billion in the same quarter last year.

The quarter included a $43-million reversal of its provisions for credit losses compared with a charge of $143 million a year ago.

National Bank’s adjusted profit for the quarter was $2.36 per diluted share, up from $1.66 per diluted share in the same quarter last year.

Analysts on average had expected a profit of $2.13 per share, according to financial market data firm Refinitiv.

“The bank’s strong performance since the beginning of the fiscal year has continued in the third quarter of 2021,” National Bank CEO Louis Vachon said in a statement.

“The continued improvement in the economic environment was conducive to growth, as demonstrated by a sustained increase in our revenues.”

National Bank said personal and commercial earned $330 million in its third quarter, up from $223 million in the same quarter last year, helped by an increase in total revenues and lower provisions for credit losses.

Wealth management earned $165 million in the quarter, up from $127 million a year ago, while National Bank’s financial markets business earned $227 million compared with $188 million in the same quarter last year.

Assets under administration and under management were $743 billion as of July 31, up from $597 billion in October 2020. Total assets were $354 billion, up slightly from $332 billion over the same period.

The bank’s U.S. specialty finance and international operations earned $161 million in the quarter, up from $87 million a year ago.

Under the “other” heading, National Bank reported a loss of $44 million in the quarter compared with a loss of $23 million in the same quarter last year.

National Bank’s board of directors declared a dividend of $0.71 per common share for the quarter ending Oct. 31, 2021, unchanged from the previous quarter.

Staff, with files from The Canadian Press

The Canadian Press is a national news agency headquartered in Toronto and founded in 1917.