Own CBA shares? What to watch in next week's earnings update

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) is scheduled to release its earnings results for the first half of FY25 next Tuesday (12 February).

In its Q1 2025 update last November, CBA announced: 

• Operating income was up 3.5%
• Operating expenses were up 3%
• Unaudited statutory net profit after tax was $2.5 billion.

So what should investors in Australia's largest bank look out for in its upcoming earnings update for the half-year ended 31 December 2024?

Dividends 

CBA's half-year report will include an interim dividend announcement. 

In January, analysts on the CommSec trading platform predicted CBA shares would pay a dividend of $4.95 per share in 2025.

This is 6.45% higher than the $4.65 per share dividend that CBA paid to its shareholders last year.

Despite the bump, this forecast CBA dividend yield is lower than the other big four banks.

Earnings 

One factor that can influence how much a company pays in dividends is its earnings. This is because dividends are typically paid out from company profits. 

If CBA experiences an increase in its share price (which it has) without a proportional rise in dividends, the dividend yield will decrease.

The key metrics to watch in the report next week are net profit after tax (NPAT) and net interest margin (NIM). Both were down in the previous full-year results.  

Can the CBA train keep chugging along?

The CBA share price has been the gift that keeps on giving for many investors. It has continued its steady march upward, defying many analysts' predictions and valuations. 

As James Mickleboro reported in January, all the major brokers had price targets at least 25% below where CBA shares were trading. 

Despite this, the stock is up 3.26% year to date, following a 37% gain in 2024. 

As my colleague Sebastian Bowen reported on 10 January, one reason for this could be that super funds were propping up the CBA share price. 

Check out the bank's earnings results next week — and those of other ASX shares of interest — on the Motley Fool Australia's February 2025 reporting season calendar.