Australia’s Awesome Four Banks

Australia’s four leading banks have reported strong earnings for the six months to March this year. With National Australia Bank’s reported profits of A$2.67 billion for half-year, the four banks’ combined total profits is a record $12 billion as shown in the graphic below:

australia-bank-profits.jpg

Source:News.com.au

In addition to rising profits, NAB and rivals have announced declining charges for bad debts and improving figures for late payments of mortgage payments.

After weathering the great financial crisis well, Australia’s banks are in stronger position to take advantage of the growth in emerging Asian economies due to their close proximity to those economies. The four banks are listed below together with their current dividend yields and stock prices:

1.Bank:National Australia Bank Ltd (OTC:NABZY)
Current Share Price: $28.42
Current Dividend Yield: 5.48%

2.Bank:Australia And New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (OTC:ANZBY)
Current Share Price: $24.69
Current Dividend Yield: 5.82%

3.Bank:Commonwealth Bank Of Australia (OTC:CMWAY)
Current Share Price: $56.23
Current Dividend Yield: 4.83%

4.Bank:Westpac Banking Corp (NYSE:WBK)
Current Share Price: $124.86
Current Dividend Yield: 5.68%

The chart below shows the 5-year performance comparison of the above banks against four large U.S. banks:

Click to enlarge

four-us-aussie-banks-compare.png

Disclosure: No positions

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