Q: Please comment on EQB's latest Q especially to Provision to credit losses(PCL) as to amount and comparison with those of the big 6 Can.Banks. Market's initial reaction was strong--H$82.25, L$80, C$80.31+.71 Txs forU usual great services & views
5i Research Answer:
EPS of $2.98 beat estimates of $2.59; revenue of $284.5M beat estimates by 5%. The dividend was raised 5.2%. ROE was an impressive 16.5%. Book value is $70.33 (up 4% sequentially, 12% annually). Net interest margin was 2.00%. EQB has managed rate hikes very well. Customer count grew 30%. Credit provisions were only $19.6M (0.22%) and impaired loans were 0.76% of total assets. Due to size differences the dollar amount comparables to other banks makes little sense, but for RY its provisions were 0.29% and impaired loans were 0.21%. Other banks were generally higher.