Please note that as of August 2012, The Bank Investor site is no longer being updated. Australia and New Zealand's best analysis of the banking and finance industry can be found at Banking Day.
Articles by John Kavanagh
John Kavanagh is the founding editor of The Bank Investor.
What the analysts are saying: NAB to maintain the momentum 
National Australia Bank will continue to take market share away from its rivals in the retail and business banking markets, according to analysts.
After the release of the bank's 2010/11 results last week, six out of six analysts' reports sighted by The Bank Investor have NAB rated a Buy (or ... More
What the analysts are saying: bank earnings cycle has peaked
Investors can look forward to reports of earnings growth of between 10 and 20 per cent from the three of the big four banks that will report their 2010/11 financial results over the next two weeks. But the outlook for the 2011/12 year is far less certain and investors will be watching for guidance ... More
What the analysts are saying: store finance groups appeal
With consumers keeping their money in their wallets, it might be expected that sentiment towards finance companies specialising in store finance would be negative. However, several analysts have issued positive recommendation on Thorn Group and FlexiGroup in recent weeks. In a note issued on ... More
Published on Monday, 17 October, 2011
Filed under Specialist finance
Term deposit hybrids offer diversification
Westpac is betting that investors in term deposits will become more sophisticated in their use of the product and start to look for some diversification in interest rate structures and terms.
About 12 months ago the bank started selling a range of products called Retirement Deposits. One of the ... More
Bank of Queensland lowers target return on equity
Bank of Queensland suffered a 13 per cent fall in earnings for the year to August 2011, due to a big increase in its bad debt charge. The profit improved in the second half, however.
Net profit fell from $181.9 million to $158.7 million. Earnings per share fell from 77 cents to 63.1 cents and the ... More
Low EPS growth for banks in 2012
Sell-side analysts are expecting the three major banks that are due to report their 2010/11 financial results over the coming month to produce growth in earnings per share of between nine and 18 per cent. But the outlook for the 2011/12 financial year is for a significant reduction in growth in ... MoreBank balance sheets solid, analysts say
Several sell-side analysts have issued notes in early October reminding clients that the current balance sheet strength and funding composition of the Australian banks is much stronger than it was leading up to the financial crisis in 2007. These reminders are in response to the sustained ... MoreCBA targets self-managed super with Count deal
Commonwealth Bank will be hoping to grab a bigger share of the self-managed superannuation market with its acquisition of Count Financial. Count announced yesterday that it had received an offer of A$1.40 a share from Commonwealth, pricing the company on a multiple of 14.6 times its 2010/11 ... More
Published on Wednesday, 31 August, 2011
Filed under CBA, funds management
Returns will be lower, says IMB board
The IMB board has warned shareholders to expect lower returns as the group prepared itself for higher capital and liquidity requirements under Basel III. This saw the Wollongong-based building society cut its dividend.
With this cut to its dividend, IMB declared a final payout of 15 cents a share ... More
Published on Tuesday, 30 August, 2011
Filed under results, small institutions
Homeloans reports stronger lending but weaker bottom line
Mortgage lender Homeloans Ltd is caught between the strong growth of its branded loan book and accelerating run-off of its securitised portfolio. The result was a fall in net profit and earnings per share for the year to June.
Homeloans yesterday announced that its net profit fell 12.1 per cent ... More
Published on Tuesday, 30 August, 2011
Filed under results, small institutions
Grimshaw ‘happy’ with low-return BOQ
It didn’t matter how many times the question was asked, incoming Bank of Queensland chief executive Stuart Grimshaw declared himself happy with the business he is taking over. He will review the group’s strategy in due course but there are no pressing issues, he says.
Bank of Queensland announced ... More
Published on Thursday, 25 August, 2011
Filed under BoQ
ANZ adds common equity trigger to hybrid
ANZ has added a common equity trigger to its latest convertible preference share issue (CPS3), which was launched yesterday, making the securities eligible for transition relief under the Basel III rules.
If the bank’s tier-one ratio falls to 5.12 per cent these preference shares will be subject ... More
Published on Wednesday, 24 August, 2011
Filed under ANZ, funding, prudential, bond issues
