Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) reported a 16 per cent rise in fourth-quarter net profit on Sunday, aided by higher revenue and lower impairments.

The earnings continued a mixed fourth-quarter results season for UAE banks, with Emirates NBD and Dubai Islamic Bank reporting bumper profit growth but National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Mashreq and Union National Bank recording profit slumps.

ADCB, the emirate's third-largest bank by assets, made a net profit attributable to shareholders of Dh1.19 billion ($324 million) in the three months to December 31, compared with Dh1.02 billion  in the corresponding period of the previous year, it said in a bourse statement.

Two analysts polled by Reuters had forecast net profit for the quarter of Dh986 million and Dh1.12 billion respectively.

The earnings were boosted by a seven per cent year-on-year increase in quarterly operating income to Dh2.01 billion, while the amount the bank set aside to cover bad loans was 28 per cent lower than the fourth quarter of 2014 at Dh110 million.

Naveed Ahmed, senior manager at Global Investment House, said he was positive on the results, noting the "massive drop in its provisions due to improvement in asset quality".

ADCB made a 2015 net profit of Dh4.92 billion, up 22 per cent on 2014, it said in the statement.

Total loans at the bank stood at 153.68 billion dirhams on December 31, up nine per cent on the end of the previous year. Customer deposits reached Dh143.53 billion, up 14 per cent.

The bank also proposed a cash dividend of 0.45 dirhams per share for 2015, against the 0.40 dirhams it paid for 2014.-Reuters