Royal Bank of Canada said Friday its first-quarter net income rose 24 per cent to $3.03 billion.

That's compared to the $2.45 billion of net income that RBC reported during the first quarter of last year.

The Toronto-based bank said its net income was equal to $1.97 per diluted share for the quarter, up 39 cents from $1.58 per diluted share a year ago.

Revenue for the three months ended Jan. 31 was $9.55 billion, up from $9.36 billion during the same period last year.

After adjustments the lender had $1.87 per share of earnings, higher than the $1.77 per share that analysts had expected, according to Thomson Reuters.

After stripping out the sale of the U.S. operations of Moneris, RBC said it earned $2.82 billion, up 15 per cent from $2.45 billion a year ago.

The bank also raised its dividend by four cents, or five per cent, to 87 cents per share, payable on May 24.

"RBC reported earnings of $3 billion for the first quarter reflecting strength across our businesses as we continued to invest in growth," chief executive Dave McKay said in a statement.

"As the operating landscape evolves, we are focused on our strategy of building a digitally-enabled relationship bank to meet the changing expectations of our clients."