Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) has announced its results for the quarter ended 31st January, 2019 and reported unchanged income for its wealth management unit from a year ago.
RBC cites as causes for the neutral results higher costs of business growth, provision for credit loses (PCL) and regulatory costs, and market uncertainty causing lower transaction volumes.
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Net income for wealth management did increase by 8% from Q4 2018, “primarily reflecting an increase in net interest income, a favourable accounting adjustment related to Canadian Wealth Management in the current period, and the change in fair value of seed capital investments.”
RBC however concedes that these factors were held in check by the headwinds mentioned above.
In Q4 of 2018, RBC’s wealth management results showed a 13% increase compared to the corresponding quarter of 2017, thanks in part to a strong macro environment, compared to that experienced since.
Across the whole of the business, RBC has reported net income of C$3.2bn for the quarter, an increase of 5% compared to a year ago, thanks to sound earnings growth in personal and commercial banking.
Reflecting this, the banks’s board of directors has announced an increase to its quarterly common share dividend of 4%.
Dave McKay, RBC’s president and CEO, has said, “Our strategy and unwavering focus on delivering value for our clients and shareholders continues to underpin our ability to
consistently deliver solid results, even against a challenging market backdrop.
“In addition to delivering earnings of $3.2 billion, we are pleased to increase our quarterly dividend by 4% today. We remain focused on prudently managing our risks and balancing our investments for long-term growth as we transform the client journey.”
