State Bank of India on Friday reported a 24 percent drop in net profit for the fiscal year 2015-16 - its sharpest annual fall in five years. India's largest bank posted a net profit of INR 9,950.65 crore for the year against the 13,101 crore it recorded in the previous fiscal year. Net profit for the fourth quarter ended March declined 66.23 per cent to 1,264 crore. NPA provisioning for the quarter stood at INR 12,139.17 crore (4,985.8 crore). The lower profit was a reflection of higher provisioning and cleansing of the balance sheet. SBI Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya said that most stressed assets on the books have been recognized in the fourth quarter of 2015-16 and indicated that enhanced provisioning would continue in the first few quarters of the current fiscal year. The SBI scrip shrugged off the disappointing results and rose 6.42 percent to close at ₹195.55 on the BSE. The bank's board recommended a dividend of ₹2.60, or 260 percent, for 2015-16.