Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Cut to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Barclays upped their target price on Royal Bank of Canada from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research report on Monday, August 21st. Credit Suisse Group raised their price target on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, August 25th. Finally, CIBC downgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a sector outperform rating to a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday, May 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $138.60.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 0.2 %

RY stock opened at $90.32 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $126.11 billion, a PE ratio of 11.71, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.83. Royal Bank of Canada has a 1-year low of $83.63 and a 1-year high of $104.72. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $94.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $95.71.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.019 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.51%. This is a positive change from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Bank of Canada

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RY. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in Royal Bank of Canada by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 817,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $90,144,000 after purchasing an additional 41,346 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its position in Royal Bank of Canada by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 7,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $775,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 2.0% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 23,498 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,591,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 47.1% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $545,000 after buying an additional 1,582 shares during the period. Finally, Thomas White International Ltd. lifted its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 4.6% in the first quarter. Thomas White International Ltd. now owns 15,778 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,740,000 after buying an additional 701 shares during the period. 42.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada operates as a diversified financial service company worldwide. The company's Personal & Commercial Banking segment offers checking and savings accounts, home equity financing, personal lending, private banking, indirect lending, including auto financing, mutual funds and self-directed brokerage accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, credit cards, and payment products and solutions; and lending, leasing, deposit, investment, foreign exchange, cash management, auto dealer financing, trade products, and services to small and medium-sized commercial businesses.