SINGAPORE, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Singapore's United Overseas Bank reported on Thursday a 22% rise in net profit in the fourth quarter from a year earlier on the back of higher net fee and non-interest income.

UOB, which is Southeast Asia's third-largest bank by assets, said October-December net profit climbed to S$1.40 billion ($1.04 billion) from S$1.15 billion a year earlier.

This beat the mean estimate of S$1.37 billion from three analysts polled by LSEG.

The bank recommended the payment of a final dividend of 85 Singapore cents per share, bringing the total dividend for 2023 to S$1.70 per share. ($1 = 1.3439 Singapore dollars) (Reporting by Yantoultra Ngui; Editing by Chris Reese and Cynthia Osterman)