CIBC hikes dividend as profit beats expectations
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce on Thursday exceeded analyst expectations as it reported higher fourth-quarter profits than it did last year due to better performances in each of its business streams.
Net income for the three-month period ending Oct. 31 increased 27 per cent compared to the same period last year to $1.88 billion, resulting in net earnings per share of $1.90.
Adjusted for certain conditions, the bank earned $1.9 billion, up 24 per cent from a year ago, resulting in earnings per share of $1.91. Analysts had expected CIBC to earn $1.78 per share.
“Our bank delivered record financial performance in 2024,” CIBC chief executive Victor Dodig said in a statement. “We continued our robust net client growth, improved our strong client experience scores and continued to build a connected culture across our bank to serve our clients.”
He said the bank is focused on “driving growth in the mass affluent and high-net-worth client segments, building on our strength in digital to serve consumers, leveraging our connected platform to grow our wealth management, commercial banking and capital markets businesses, and enabling, simplifying and protecting our bank.”
CIBC’s total provisions for credit losses (PCL) — the amount of money banks keep aside to tackle potentially bad loans — was $419 million for the fourth quarter, down $122 million, or 23 per cent, from the same quarter last year.
PCL on performing loans, those the banks are likely to get back, decreased by $61 million from a year ago, while PCL on impaired loans, those the bank may not get back in their entirety, also decreased by $61 million.
CIBC increased its quarterly dividend by seven cents to 97 cents per share.
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