RBC reports Q2 profit up 25% from year ago

Royal Bank of Canada raised its quarterly dividend as it reported its second-quarter profit rose 25% compared with a year earlier.

The bank said Thursday it will now pay a quarterly dividend of $1.76 per share, an increase from $1.64 per share.

The increased payment to shareholders came as RBC says it earned $5.5 billion or $3.85 per diluted share for the quarter ended April 30, up from a profit of $4.4 billion or $3.02 per diluted share a year earlier.

Revenue totalled $17.5 billion for the quarter, up from $15.7 billion in the same quarter last year, while the bank’s provision for credit losses amounted to $912 million, down from $1.4 billion a year ago.

On an adjusted basis, RBC says it earned $3.90 per diluted share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of $3.12 per diluted share in the same quarter last year.

Analysts on average had expected an adjusted profit of $3.78 per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

“Our second-quarter earnings showcase our consistency in delivering premium profitability and long-term shareholder value, underpinned by solid growth across our diversified businesses and balance sheet strength,” RBC chief executive Dave McKay said in a statement.

RBC said its personal banking group earned $1.9 billion, up from $1.6 billion in the same quarter last year helped by higher net interest income and lower provisions for credit losses as well as higher fee-based client assets.

The bank’s commercial banking operations earned $854 million in the quarter, up from $597 million a year earlier, while its wealth management business earned $1.2 billion, up from $929 million in the same quarter last year.

RBC’s insurance business earned $218 million, up from $211 million a year ago, and its capital markets business earned $1.5 billion, up from $1.2 billion a year earlier.

The Canadian Press

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