MELBOURNE (S&P Global Ratings) Nov. 13, 2023--Strong capital and sound asset quality should help Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) maintain a robust credit profile. ANZ today announced a cash profit of A$7.4 billion for the 12 months ended Sept. 30, 2023. The results of ANZ (AA-/Stable/A-1+), one of Australia's four major lenders, were solid across all key business divisions and in line with our expectations. We expect ANZ's capital levels to remain strong, with a common equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio above 11%. As of Sept. 30, 2023, ANZ's CET1 ratio stood at 13.3%. Because of the pending acquisition of Suncorp-Metway Ltd. (SML; A+/Positive/A-1), ANZ is maintaining excess capital. On a pro forma basis, including the proposed
