Fourth-quarter net profit of 949 million francs easily beat expectations, but was flattered by one-off factors.

The bank proposed raising its 2015 dividend to 0.85 Swiss franc per share, including a special payout of 0.25 francs, just ahead of analysts' forecasts.

It was the second consecutive year of a special payout, but executives said investors should not get used to them. The special payout for 2015 hinged on gains from deferred tax assets that are unlikely to be as large in the years ahead.

The bank renewed its pledge to pay out more than half of net profit to shareholders.

UBS's strong earnings have bucked the trend at most of its European peers, many of which trail the Swiss bank when it comes to overhauling their investment banks. Rival Credit Suisse, in the midst of this process, reports results on Thursday.

"UBS is a well-restructured bank but is not immune to an Asia slowdown in our view," JPMorgan Cazenove analysts wrote in a research note, keeping a neutral rating on the stock.

UBS said it saw low levels of client activity and pronounced risk aversion in the fourth quarter, when it booked a net tax benefit of 715 million francs thanks to revaluing deferred tax assets.

Regulatory costs will remain a burden, it said.

UBS stock had been trading at around 11 times 12-month forward earnings, a slight premium to rival Credit Suisse but a discount to Julius Baer, according to StarMine, which weights analyst estimates by their previous forecasting accuracy.

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