ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price on watch after $1.8 billion Q1 cash profit

The Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ) share price will be one to watch on Thursday.

This follows the release of the banking giant’s first quarter update this morning.

How did ANZ perform in the first quarter?

For the three months ended 31 December, the banking giant reported an unaudited statutory profit after tax of $1,624 million. This was a 59% increase on the average profit it achieved during the final two quarters of FY 2020.

It was a similarly positive story for its unaudited cash earnings from continuing operations, which came in at $1,810 million. This is a 54% jump on the average of the last two quarters of FY 2020.

Another positive is that the bank has followed the lead of Westpac Banking Corp (ASX:…