At time of writing in morning trade on Friday, all of the big four S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) bank stocks are in the red.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share are down 0.7% at $172.12; Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) shares are down 0.9% at $38.77; ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ) shares are down 0.3% at $36.04; and National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) shares are down 0.5% at $40.14.
So, which ASX 200 bank stock is shaking off the wider selling pressure that sees the benchmark index down 0.3% at this same time?
If you said Judo Capital Holdings Ltd (ASX: JDO) shares, give yourself a virtual gold star. Judo shares are currently changing hands for $1.39 apiece, up 0.7%.
Here's why the challenger bank is grabbing investor interest today.
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ASX 200 bank stock reaffirms FY 2026 profit guidance
Judo Bank shares are outperforming in Friday morning trade following a year-to-date performance update.
The ASX 200 bank stock reported gross loans and advances of $13.8 billion as at 31 March, up 3.0% quarter-on-quarter. And total deposits increased to $11.5 billion.
The March quarter also saw an improvement in Judo Bank's net interest margin (NIM), which increased by 0.12% from its first half average to 3.15%.
As for what's ahead, the bank reaffirmed its full year FY 2026 profit before tax guidance to be in the range of $180 million to $190 million.
However, the ASX 200 bank stock noted that it now expects to see profits come in at the lower end of this range. That comes after Judo increased its collective provisions coverage to 0.94% of loans as of the end of the March quarter, up from 0.89% at the end of the December quarter.
What did Judo Bank management say?
"While our customer base remains in good financial health, we have prudently chosen to strengthen our forward looking collective provision in recognition of ongoing uncertainty for the outlook," Judo CEO Chris Bayliss said.
Looking to what might impact the ASX 200 bank stock in the months ahead, Bayliss added:
Notwithstanding the provision increase, we are still on track to deliver FY26 profit before tax within our original guidance range, albeit towards the lower end.
This continues to represent significant operating leverage, underpinned by strong lending, favourable funding conditions and disciplined cost management, and demonstrates strong progress towards our at-scale target of low-to-mid teens ROE.
