The bank said Thursday it will now pay a quarterly dividend of $1.42 per share, an increase of four cents. It also said it plans to buy back up to 30 million of its shares.
The moves came as RBC said it earned $3.95 billion or $2.74 per diluted share for the quarter ended April 30, up from $3.68 billion or $2.60 per diluted share a year earlier, helped in part by record capital markets revenue.
“This quarter, we saw strong growth across diversified revenue streams,” said chief executive Dave McKay on an earnings call.
He said the bank’s capital generation means it has options ahead for growth, including potential acquisitions, even as the bank returns more money to shareholders.
“This enormous capital that we are generating gives us significant strategic flexibility inorganically.”
The bank also has a wide range of growth options within the bank now, including making the most of its $13.5-billion HSBC Canada acquisition.
End of uncertainty for former HSBC employees
The roughly 4,500 employees RBC took on with the acquisition are now free from the uncertainty around the deal, and the barriers it posed to bringing on clients, he said.
“They’ve been on the defence for 18 months, and now we’re on the offence and you can see the excitement in their eyes to get back,” said McKay.
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