Royal Bank, CIBC report record profits

Royal Bank of Canada and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce added their names to the list of big Canadian banks reporting improved earnings in the third quarter.

With all six of Canada's banks having declared financial results, Toronto-Dominion Bank is the only one that saw declining profits as earnings went down because of losses in its insurance unit.

Royal Bank, Canada's largest bank, said its income hit a record $2.3 billion or $1.52 per share in the three months ended July 31.

That's a three per cent increase from $2.24 billion, or $1.47 per share, in the same period a year earlier and came in ahead of analyst expectations.

Royal Bank said it had record earnings in its personal banking, wealth management and commercial banking divisions. Personal and commercial banking net income was a record $1.18 billion, up $78 million or seven per cent on the year.

Revenue decreased to $7.72 billion from $7.76 billion, with increases across most of the bank’s business lines.

Insurance net income fell $19 million to $160 million, partly as a result of higher claims resulting from flooding in Alberta and Ontario. The bank said it paid out $14 million on claims resulting from severe weather.

Record profit at CIBC

CIBC reported that its profit increased to $890 million or $2.16 per diluted share from $841 million or $2 a diluted share in the same period last year.

That's the highest in company history and marks a 5.8 per cent increase in profit.

Revenue rose to $3.26 billion from $3.15 billion as both consumer and business banking expanded.

CIBC left its quarterly dividend unchanged at 96 cents per share, but it also announced a share buyback plan that would see it purchase up to eight million shares, or about two per cent of its shares outstanding.

CIBC warns it may face slower growth in consumer banking operations for the remainder of the year as higher interest rates pressure the country's housing market.

CIBC is in the midst of negotiations with Aeroplan points operator Aimia Inc. and  TD Bank over the Aeroplan rewards program, which has been part of its existing CIBC Aeroplan credit card portfolio for more than 20 years.

Insurance claims pull down TD earnings

At TD Bank, the insurance division put a drag on overall profit.

TD said net income in the quarter was $1.53 billion or $1.58 per diluted share, compared with $1.7 billion or $1.78 per share in the year-earlier period.

Its TD Insurance unit posted a third-quarter loss of $243 million after tax, as the insurer faced $418 million in increased claims in part because of severe weather.

TD said it also suffered a loss on its loan portfolio of $48 million related to the impact of the Alberta flood.

The earnings figures included charges of $24 million relating to the acquisition of the credit card portfolio of MBNA Canada.

Revenue was $5.95 billion, up from $5.84 billion of revenue in the year-earlier period with continued growth in loans and deposit volumes and favourable credit performance.

TD's personal and commercial banking section reported adjusted net income of $997 million in the third quarter, up 12 per cent compared to a year ago. 

TD Bank had given investors advance notice of its expected after-tax loss on claims associated with recent severe flooding in Alberta and the Toronto area.