Utkarsh Bank Shares Rise Despite Loan Dip

• Utkarsh Bank's loan book down 4% YOY to ₹18,306 cr; deposits up 4.5% YOY to ₹21,087 cr.
• JLG loans fell 34.1% YOY, but non-JLG loans rose 27.6%; X bucket collection hits 99.1%.
• Utkarsh shares up 2.8%; stock down 44.4% in a year, below IPO, and 52-week high price.

Shares of Utkarsh Small Finance Bank Ltd. gained on Tuesday, January 6, after the lender reported its business update for the third quarter.

The bank's loan book declined by 4% to ₹18,306 crore from ₹19,057 crore last year. It was also down 1.9% from the previous quarter's ₹18,655 crore.

On the

flip side, its deposits increased by 4.5% from last year to ₹21,087 crore in the December quarter from ₹20,172 crore in the year-ago period. On a sequential basis though, deposit growth was down 1.7%.

The joint liability group (JLG) loans witnessed a 34.1% decline to ₹6,419 crore from ₹9,737 crore in the previous year and a 15.7% decline from the previous quarter's figure of ₹7,613 crore.

However, non-JLG loans increased 27.6% to ₹11,888 crore from ₹9,320 crore in the year-ago period and were up 7.7% sequentially from ₹11,042 crore.

The lender's X bucket collection efficiency improved to 99.1% from 98.6% sequentially.

For Utkarsh and other microfinance lenders, the "X" bucke refers to highly delinquent category of loans, usually significantly overdue, such as 90-days-plus or 120-days-past due, and represents the riskiest part of their asset quality or loan book.

Shares of Utkarsh Small Finance Bank were up 2.8%  at ₹15.54 apiece aound 10.05 am on Tuesday.. The stock has declined 44.4% in the past year.  It is down 39.56% from its IPO price of ₹25 apiece and is 48.4% from its 52-week high of ₹29.33 per share.

Also Read: Tata Motors PV shares in focus after cyber attack, tariffs weigh on JLR volumes