BPM posts record profit of over 1.5 billion. Dividend revised upwards to ‘over 1 euro’
CEO Castagna: “We have achieved record levels of profitability and shareholder returns”
Banco BPM has revised its dividend guidance upwards to over 1 euro and closed the first nine months of the year with a net profit of 1.51 billion euros and an adjusted net profit of 1.53 billion, up 2.6 per cent year-on-year, marking a new all-time high for the bank. In the third quarter alone, profit stood at 452.5 million (+0.5 per cent), compared with the 432 million forecast by the market consensus. “I am pleased to present excellent results for the first nine months of the year, which have reached record levels in terms of profitability and shareholder returns,” said Banco Bpm’s CEO, Giuseppe Castagna, as he opened the conference call with analysts. These results, he added, “are based on long-term value creation and solid fundamentals”.
Coupon rate revised upwards
The institution headed by Giuseppe Castagna, according to a statement, has revised its dividend guidance for the current financial year upwards to over 1 euro per share, raising the interim dividend – due to be paid in November – from 0.46 to 0.5 euros, which will bring 750 million into shareholders’ pockets. The new interim dividend corresponds to a dividend yield of 7.5 per cent. Meanwhile, the target of a net profit in excess of 1.95 billion and the distribution to shareholders of approximately 7 billion cumulatively over the period 2024–2027 has been confirmed, of which approximately 4 billion in 2026–2027 (approximately 20 per cent of market capitalisation), including the first share buyback programme, ‘the amount of which will be determined following approval by the ECB’. ‘We have achieved a historic level of profitability and shareholder returns,’ said Castagna when presenting the results.
Strategic plan for the first half of 2027
In 2027, Banco BPM expects “to generate a pre-tax profit in excess of the target set out in the plan”, which will be sufficient “to absorb the tax increases introduced by the 2026 Budget Law” whilst reserving the right to “assess the potential impacts of the measures to be set out in the 2027 Budget Law and, where necessary, to define – as part of the new Strategic Plan due by the first half of 2027 – the related mitigation measures”.
