ING's 4Q Net Profit Falls Less than Expected -- Earnings Review

By Sabela Ojea

ING Groep NV reported earnings for the fourth quarter of 2020 on Friday. Here is what you need to know:

NET PROFIT REVIEW: ING reported a net profit of 727 million euros ($882.1 million) for the fourth quarter of 2020, from EUR880 million for the year-earlier period. Net profit had been expected to fall to EUR456.2 million, according to a forecast taken from FactSet and based on two analysts' estimates.

UNDERLYING PRETAX PROFIT REVIEW: The Dutch bank's underlying pretax profit declined to EUR1.05 billion from EUR1.34 billion for the year-earlier period. It had been expected to decrease to EUR895.4 million, according to a forecast taken from FactSet and based on two analysts' estimates.

WHAT WE WATCHED:

-COSTS: ING's total operating expenses rose to EUR2.91 million in the fourth quarter from EUR2.68 billion in the year-earlier period. These expenses included EUR331 million of regulatory costs and EUR223 million of incidental costs due to restructuring provisions and impairments, as well as a provision for customer claims in the Netherlands.

-CET1 RATIO: The bank's common equity Tier 1 ratio stood at 15.5% at the end of the quarter, compared with 15.3% at the end of the third quarter. ING set a new CET1 ratio target of around 12.5% in November.

Write to Sabela Ojea at [e-mail]; @sabelaojeaguix

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 12, 2021 05:30 ET (10:30 GMT)

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