Christine Poole Royal Bank RY-T BUY Feb 20, 2025

CM is taking less on credit provisions than other banks. Positive: credit situation better than others. Negative: taking more risk and, if wrong, stock would be penalized. CM is Canada-centric. Exposed to residential mortgages and commercial real estate in Canada; two iffy sectors, but doing better than expected. Good earnings and good asset management. 

Don't sell CM. Trades more cheaply than RY. RY commands a premium price for a premium asset.

Owns and likes.

Rotated out of TD and into RY with its strong wealth management, giving their portfolio the needed US exposure.

Excellent bank with international presence. Will continue to own shares. Brand value very strong in Canada. Will continue to buy whenever the share price dips. Balance sheet excellent. Not exposed to the threat of tariffs from the USA. 

The best Canadian bank.

In his opinion, the only quality banks in Canada are RY and NA. Best run for decades. He's not a huge bull on the Canadian banks, but this is one of the two names he'd buy.

Will benefit from any passive flows given its huge weight in ETFs. A quality company. Is not overly concerned with credit losses.

Value scores 8/10, fundamentals 8/10. King of capital, resilience, and diversified lending. Steady, consistent beats compared to the other Canadian banks. Strong Q1, shrugging off a lot of the rate cut noise. Still sees upside in wealth management and US expansion. Rock-solid balance sheet that can weather any storm.

Slowing mortgage growth, which could continue if Canadian housing slows and tariffs ramp up. Core hold for her on reliability and growth.

The gold standard. Paying a premium valuation for a premium asset. Good opportunity to buy if it came off a bit. Because of its premium status, it's come off less than the others.