National Bank of Canada's profit handily beats estimates

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March 1(Reuters) - National Bank of Canada reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday, largely boosted by its wealth management and personal and commercial businesses.

Canada's sixth-largest bank said net income in its personal banking and commercial business rose 18.3 percent to C$213 million ($159.91 million), helped by higher personal mortgage lending.

Net income in its wealth management business rose to C$101 million in the first quarter ended Jan. 31 from C$77 million.

The bank said its core tier 1 capital ratio, a key measure of its financial strength, increased to 10.6 percent, from 10.1 percent a year earlier.

National Bank of Canada, which was the top adviser on Canadian debt issues for corporations and governments in 2016, said its net income rose to C$497 million, or C$1.34 per share, in the latest quarter from C$261 million, or 67 Canadian cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding certain items, the bank earned C$1.35 per share, handily beating the average analysts' estimate of C$1.26, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

National Bank of Canada is the latest Canadian lender to report a better-than-expected quarterly profit.

Bank of Montreal and Laurentian Bank of Canada also beat on profit estimates, while Bank of Nova Scotia's earnings were broadly in line.

National Bank of Canada's total revenue rose 26.7 percent to C$1.63 billion.

($1 = 1.3320 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Ahmed Farhatha in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Sriraj Kalluvila)