The lender posted a first-quarter net profit of 27.8 million rials ($72.21 million), largely in-line with average analyst estimates and up from 24.5 million rials in profit from the year-ago period.
Analysts polled by Reuters expected Bank Muscat to post an average of 27.6 million in the first quarter.
Net interest income climbed to 53.7 million rials from 44.4 million rials last year, driven by an improvement in the company’s net interest margin. Customer deposits also climbed 4.4 percent.
Bank Muscat, whose shares have lost 6.8 percent value so far this year, booked impairment losses of 13.5 million rials in the quarter, up 14.4 percent from on year earlier.
The lender cut the cash portion of its 2010 dividend by five percent in March after an order from the state’s central bank.
The Central Bank of Oman (CBO) decided to revise the dividend payout from 45 percent to 40 percent, Bank Muscat said in a statement.
The company also approved a new $800 million bond program in February, allowing the company to tap international bond markets in the future.
