Dhanlaxmi Bank zooms 12% on robust quarterly update

 

Dhanlaxmi Bank soared stock over 12 percent in afternoon trade on October 3 after the lender posted a robust quarterly update, sparking hopes of strong earnings performances in the September quarter.

Total deposits for the lender rose 8.2 percent in July-September to Rs 13,789 crore, up from Rs 12,748 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal.

Gross advances also grew 13.2 percent to Rs 10,312 crore as against Rs 9,109 in the corresponding quarter of the base fiscal.

The update triggered hopes of healthy earnings in the September quarter, which prompted investors to lap up shares of Dhanlaxmi Bank.

At 12.54 pm, Dhanlaxmi Bank was trading 11.5 percent higher at Rs 32.50 on the National Stock Exchange.

The uptick in the stock price was also accompanied by strong volumes, as one crore shares had changed hands by early afternoon, significantly higher than the one-week daily traded average of 22 lakh shares.

The stock has also been a multibagger, delivering nearly 170 percent returns in the past year as it rode on the bullish wave seen across the PSU bank sector.

Regardless, the lender was caught in a controversy in September when independent director Sridhar Kalyanasundaram stepped down from his position. He cited concerns regarding the unethical conduct of the bank's operations and internal factionalism among the board members, among other issues.

Kalyanasundaram also pointed out that the bank's board had received numerous complaints, both anonymous and signed but had consistently chosen to dismiss them as "the habit in this bank over time".