The challenger bank reported first-quarter profit of $79.5 million, down 26 per cent from $108 million a year earlier, narrowly missing Visible Alpha’s consensus analyst expectations by 0.4 per cent. (The Logic)

Talking point: Provisions for bad loans rose 109 per cent year over year to $39 million, though they eased from $54.6 million in the previous quarter. EQB chief risk officer Marlene Lenarduzzi said on the earnings call that as things stand, the bank expects “some relief” on credit loss provisions in the back half of the year. Still, Jefferies analyst John Aiken said in a note to clients the lender “is still not out of the woods quite yet.” It was EQB’s first earnings report after announcing its $800-million acquisition of PC Financial in December last year. It is financing the deal through a share issuance to PC Financial’s former owner, Loblaw, which will hold a 16 per cent stake in EQB—with the option to increase it to 25 per cent—and two board seats. On the earnings call, chief executive Chadwick Westlake said the acquisition would be transformational, adding that “as soon as we close PC Financial in [the] coming months, our growth profile will shift meaningfully.”

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