Woori Financial Group reports 1.6 percent drop in Q3 net profit

Woori Financial Group reported a 1.6 percent decline in Q3 net profit, attributed to a drop in sales, but its earnings exceeded market expectations.

Woori Bank headquarters in central Seoul [WOORI FINANCIAL GROUP]

Woori Financial Group saw its third-quarter net profit slip 1.6 percent from a year earlier due to a sharp drop in sales, according to its regulatory filing on Thursday.

Net profit for the July-September period came to 918.2 billion won ($675.2 million), compared to 933.3 billion won posted during the same period last year. But it beat the FnGuide market consensus that projected 856.9 billion won in net profit.

Operating income for the July-September period was 1.22 trillion won, down 3.7 percent from a year ago. Revenue plunged 51.6 percent on-year to 9.88 trillion won.

The earnings exceeded market expectations. The average estimate of net profit by analysts stood at 835.4 billion won, according to a survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency.

The third quarter net marked a 37.6 percent spike from the 667.2 billion won net profit in the second quarter, according to Woori Financial.

The group attributed the on-quarter gain to an increase in interest income, noting interest income in the first three quarters of the year stood at 6.6 trillion won, compared to 6.34 trillion won recorded over the same period last year.

Accumulated net profit in the first nine months of the year came to 2.53 trillion won, down 9.3 percent from 2.72 trillion won a year earlier.

Woori Financial Group on Wednesday pledged to raise its presence in the overseas market, especially in Southeast Asia, Middle East and Europe, promising to raise 25 percent of its net profit from overseas branches by 2030 from an estimated 15 percent this year.

Bigger rival KB Financial Group on Tuesday reported 1.34 trillion won in net profit in the third quarter, which was down 1.3 percent from a year earlier. Shinhan and Hana Financial Group are scheduled to report their third quarter earnings on Friday.

BY JIN MIN-JI, YONHAP [jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]