MONTREAL - Laurentian Bank of Canada (TSX:LB) is raising its dividend while announcing a lower second-quarter profit of $31 million.
The Quebec-based bank says it's raising its quarterly payment to shareholders by a penny to 52 cents per share.
Laurentian earned 99 cents diluted per share in its latest quarter, compared with a profit of $33.8 million or $1.05 per share in the same quarter a year ago.
The bank says its adjusted profit, excluding items, was $39.4 million, or $1.29 diluted per share, compared with $39.2 million or $1.24 diluted per share for the same period in 2013.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected an adjusted profit of $1.24 per share for the quarter.
The bank says its return on equity was 9.2 per cent for the quarter, compared with 10.4 per cent a year ago.