Royal Bank of Canada vs Banco Santander SA — how do they compare? Royal Bank of Canada trades at $210.37 (market cap $289.51B), while Banco Santander SA trades at $13.7 (market cap $191.46B). The key difference: Royal Bank of Canada is the larger of the two by market cap, and Royal Bank of Canada pays the higher dividend (2.42%). Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| RY | SAN | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $289.51B | $191.46B |
Sector | Financials | Financials |
52-Week High | $217.87 | $14.37 |
52-Week Low | $128.46 | $8.40 |
Dividend Yield | 2.42% | 2.09% |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Royal Bank of Canada (RY) trades at $210.88, down 2.11% on the day, amid a bullish technical setup with support near $208 and resistance at $214. The company reported strong Q1 2026 earnings of $2.84 per share, beating estimates, and has a history of recent beats. Revenue grew to $66.53B in 2025, with a net income margin of 31.85% and a solid ROE of 17.17%. Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive, with a 43% buy rating.
RY's outlook is supported by consistent earnings performance and a robust dividend, recently increased to $1.76 per share. However, risks include elevated valuation multiples like a P/E of 19.42 and macroeconomic sensitivity. The stock offers stability through its banking diversification but faces headwinds from interest rate volatility and credit quality concerns.
Santander (SAN) trades at $13.65, up 0.74% with mixed technical signals showing bearish moving averages but oversold RSI. The company reported Q1 2026 EPS beat ($0.41 vs $0.29 expected) and maintains strong profitability with 26.72% net margin and 16.18% ROE. Recent developments include the $12.2 billion Webster Bank acquisition and AI-driven cost initiatives targeting $1.15 billion in business value.
SAN offers value with a 13.23 P/E and dividend yield near 4.4%, supported by 64% analyst buy ratings. Key risks include declining cash flows (-$28.13B in 2024) and Spanish antitrust probes. The stock's upside depends on successful integration of acquisitions and AI efficiency gains offsetting macroeconomic pressures on European banking.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Royal Bank of Canada is one of the two largest banks in Canada. It is a diversified financial services company, offering personal and commercial banking, wealth-management services, insurance, corporate banking, and capital markets services. The bank is concentrated in Canada, with additional operations in the U.S. and other countries.
Read more on RY →Santander's focus is on retail and commercial banking. Latin America is geographically the largest operation, with Brazil by far the largest. Its continental European business is still mainly Iberian. Santander's U.K. presence is the result of the acquisition of building society Abbey. In the U.S., Santander operates a vehicle finance business and a regional bank focused on the Northeastern states.
Read more on SAN →