CIBC and TD continue big bank trend of dividend hikes with 10% increase

Toronto-Dominion Bank and the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce revealed their financial results on Thursday, and both big lenders raised their quarterly payout to shareholders.

TD announced it will raise its dividend to 89 cents per share, up from 79 cents per share previously. CIBC, meanwhile, raised its dividend to $1.61 per common share, up from $1.46.

Both hikes are of just over 10 per cent and they came after Scotiabank and Royal Bank announced plans to increase their ownpayouts earlier this week. Bank of Montreal will report its earnings tomorrow and it, too, is expected to raise its dividend.

Scotia hiked by 11 per cent, from 90 cents to $1 per share. Royal, meanwhile, raised its payout from $1.08 to $1.21 a 12 per cent increase.

The dividend hikes were expected, but the exact amount was unknown. The banks have been sitting on excess amounts of cash for close to two years now, as regulators forbade them from raising their payouts to shareholders in March 2020 in an attempt to conserve capital for the uncertainty to come.

But the banks have weathered the pandemic largely unscathed, as borrowers have managed to stay on top of the debts for the most part. Which is why last month, the regulator removed those restrictions on dividend hikes for shareholders.

More to come.