SICO issues Q3 earnings estimates; NCB seen 16% higher

Bahrain-based SICO Investment Bank on Sunday released Q3 2018 net profit forecasts for the Tadawul-listed Saudi firms under its coverage.

Banks are likely to register a modest recovery in loans and will benefit from net interest margin (NIM) expansion, it added.

Al Rajhi Bank and Alinma Bank are estimated to report profit growth at 12 percent and 11 percent year-on-year (YoY) to SAR 2.5 billion and SAR 599 million, respectively, in Q3 2018.

National Commercial Bank (NCB) will see its net profit rise 16 percent YoY to SAR 2.5 billion, while Saudi British Bank is forecast to increase 12 percent YoY to SAR 1.2 billion.

Petrochemical major Saudi Basic Industries Corp.’s (SABIC) earnings are expected to edge up 1 percent YoY to SAR 5.8 billion in Q3 2018. However, National Industrialization Co.’s (Tasnee) profit will rise 70 percent YoY to SAR 375 million.

Net profit of Saudi Industrial Investment Group (SIIG) is forecast to jump 9 percent YoY to SAR 247 million.

According to SICO, Saudi Telecom Co.’s (STC) net income is expected to fall 4 percent YoY to SAR 2.5 billion.

Among the cement firms, Arabian Cement’s earnings are projected to drop 195 percent YoY, while Saudi Cement is likely to decline 28 percent.

Net profit of Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Maaden) is expected to jump 79 percent YoY to SAR 433 million, driven by rising commodity prices.

Meanwhile, Saudi Ground Services is likely to see a YoY decline of 31 percent due to pressure from the cost of living allowance and expat levy. However, dairy producer Almarai will see a 4 percent increase in net profit to SAR 691 million, on higher milk prices in the Kingdom.