Shares of Indian Bank rose 5% to Rs 295 in intraday trade on Monday on a healthy outlook. Shares of the state-owned lender were trading near its 52-week high of Rs 306 on December 14, 2022. In contrast, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 0.07% at 59,290 at 2:55 pm.

Indian Bank reported a nearly tripling profit to Rs 1,396 crore for the quarter ending December 2022 (Q3FY23), driven by higher interest income and lower non-performing loans. The lender posted a net profit of Rs 690 crore in the same period last year (Q3FY22).

The bank’s net interest income rose 25% to Rs 5,499 crore compared to Rs 4,395 a year earlier. Regarding asset quality, the bank’s total non-performing assets fell to 6.53% of total advances, compared with 9.13% at the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2022, an improvement for the bank. Net non-performing assets also fell to 1% from 2.72% a year earlier.

Indian Bank (up 19%) have underperformed its peers over the past three months. Shares of UCO Bank, Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Punjab and Sindh Bank and Bank of Maharashtra have risen by 35% and 100%, respectively, during the period. In comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex has lost 1.4% over the three months.