Westpac's King ends reign with stable result
Late-term CEOs rarely report anything that would damage their legacy. Peter King, who hands a stable, if still challenged, Westpac to his successor, is no exception.
If there was any risk of something radically undermining the high prices paid for bank shares, Westpac full-year results didn't deliver it. They were a tad ahead of market expectations, largely thanks to a significantly better second half.
A slightly higher dividend plus a $1 billion lift in the bank’s ongoing capital buyback certainly won’t disappoint shareholders, although some will be unhappy that the capital returns didn’t include a special dividend, which retail shareholders in particular were banking on.
“The bottom line was better than expected, but pre-provision profit was in-line with consensus,” Morgan Stanley told clients in a note. “We believe underlying trends and the capital return were a little disappointing, given high investor expectations and elevated trading multiples.”
In UBS’ view it was an “In-line result but lack of 2H 24 special dividend could be a cause for disappointment”.
