 "Angel One")
Indian brokerage firm Angel One's fourth-quarter profit rose 27% on Wednesday as trading activity helped more than make up for its higher spending amid heated competition for clients.
The company's profit rose to 3.4 billion rupees ($40.7 million) in the quarter, boosted by an increase in trading activity, especially among retail investors, as the country's stock market touched record highs and commodity prices rose sharply.
The profit growth was more than the 14% rise in the third quarter, which was the slowest since the company listed in September 2020.
Buoyant trading activity in the fourth quarter boosted Angel One's orders by 79.4%, helping its consolidated revenue rise nearly 65% to 13.57 billion rupees.
However, its total expenses rose around 92%, with its net profit margin falling to 25% from 32.3% a year earlier.
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Angel One has been spending more on client acquisition and technological upgrades as it battles rising competition from startups such as Zerodha, Groww and Upstox.
Angel One, which started as a traditional brokerage in 1996, held a 14.7% share of demat accounts in India in the latest quarter, compared with 12% a year earlier.
Its shares are down 18% since the start of the year, compared with a 1.8% fall in the broader Nifty Financial Services index.
