Australia and New Zealand Banking Group's
(ASX:ANZ) first half net profit has come in just above expectations.
The bank posted a net profit after tax of $2.94 billion, a 7 per cent increase on the previous half.
Underlying cash profit also beat expectations with a 10 per cent jump to $3.18 billion compared to the same period a year ago
ANZ also announced an interim dividend of 73 cents fully-franked. That’s up 11 per cent on last year, but the bank says it’s a rebalancing to keep dividends more even for each half.
The bank says the benefits of less reliance on wholesale funding and asset repricing have been offset by deposit competition.
ANZ also flagged improving earnings diversification, with 20 per cent of revenue coming from outside Australia and New Zealand.
