by winston » Mon May 25, 2026 8:48 am
vested
Alliance Bank
(BUY; TP: RM5.70)
All ends well
Summary
ABMB’s FY26 net profit of RM826.5m (+10.1% YoY) met expectations, tracking at 100% and 102.3% of our and consensus full-year estimates.
A second interim dividend of 9.74 sen/share was declared with ex-date on 11 June.
Full-year growth was driven by robust broad-based operational expansion and a lower tax burden. Asset quality remained resilient, with the GIL ratio improving to 1.73% (-16bp QoQ) despite lingering SME pressures.
Management’s cautious optimism for FY27 focuses on disciplined growth and lower credit costs. Maintain BUY with a GGM-TP of RM5.70.
Full report
Within expectations. Alliance Bank (ABMB) posted 4QFY26 core earnings of RM206.0m (-4.3% QoQ, +4.3% YoY), lifting FY26 net profit to RM826.5m (+10.1% YoY). The results met expectations, coming in at 100~102.3% of our and consensus’ full-year estimates, respectively.
Dividend. A second interim dividend of 9.74 sen per share was proposed (4QFY25: 9.90 sen), bringing the total FY26 payout to 19.11 sen per share (FY25: 19.40 sen). The ex-date is scheduled for 11 June 2026.
QoQ. TI and net profit contracted by 6.1% and 4.3% QoQ, respectively. The sequential decline was underpinned by a pull-back in NOII (-32.0%) and NII (-1.5%), dragged down by lower treasury gains and NIM compression from loan/deposit mix adjustments. However, the bottom-line downside was cushioned by lower provisioning and a reduced tax rate.
YoY. TI rose 5.3%, with key driver anchored by NOII (+45.3%), thanks to alleviated treasury gain. That said, the bottom line growth (+4.3%) was hindered by a negative Jaws, where the opex growth outpaced TI marginally by 40bps.
YTD. Full-year core earnings rose 10.1%, driven by broad-based operational momentum and a lower tax burden. Backed by positive Jaws (+10 bps), growth was fuelled by stronger contributions across the board: (i) NOII (+47.1%), (ii) Islamic Banking (+6.5%), and (iii) NII (+2.3%).
Other key trends. Gross loan growth moderated to 7.5% YoY (-40 bps) as key corporate accounts migrated to unrated corporate bonds for financing. Similarly, deposit growth decelerated to 8.8% YoY (-160 bps QoQ), leading to easing loan-to-deposit ratio (LDR) of 93.8% (-280 bps QoQ). Despite lingering SME pressures, the gross impaired loan (GIL) ratio improved to 1.73% (-16 bps QoQ), strengthening loan loss coverage (LLC) to 113.1% (+410 bps QoQ).
Outlook. Management reiterated its cautiously optimistic stance for FY27, underpinned by Malaysia’s supportive liquidity environment and still-resilient domestic growth backdrop, although geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and potential supply chain disruptions could dampen sentiment and raise cost pressures.
Looking ahead, ABMB guides for loan growth (including unrated bonds) of 7.5-10.0%, supported by continued momentum in SME and consumer segments, while NIM is expected to remain within 2.28-2.35% amid persistent deposit competition and a more prudent asset mix.
Credit costs are projected to ease to 27-32bps following FY26’s proactive overlay build-up of c.RM185m, with ROE guided at 10.0-10.5%. Management continues to emphasise disciplined growth, asset quality resilience and sustainable franchise expansion as Acceler8 approaches its final year.
On the asset quality front, the trend is projected to remain well contained, with the GIL ratio continuing to improve despite ongoing SME loan expansion. Management highlighted that credit stress is largely confined to early delinquency stages, with minimal migration into impaired loans.
The uptick in 30-day past due (DPD) was mainly driven by isolated SME and consumer accounts facing timing-related cash flow pressures rather than any broad-based deterioration. Proactive account management, alongside restructuring efforts and support schemes, has helped to curb slippage into non-performing status, thereby supporting a gradual improvement in overall asset quality metrics.
Forecast. Maintained.
Maintain BUY with GGM-TP of RM5.70, premised on 1.0x CY27 P/B (9.6% ROE, 9.6% COE, and 3.0% LTG). This valuation sits slightly below the 5-year pre-Covid mean of 1.1x. We believe a re-rating could be on the cards, catalysed by M&A news flow following the recalibrated 30% target stake by the Singaporean suitor. We continue to like ABMB for its high-yielding SME portfolio and prudent provisioning buffers.
Core net EPS (sen)
FY26a: 49.3
FY27f: 49.8
FY28f: 53.2
Source: HLIB
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