Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 39,450 Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 4.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 928,422 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 39,450 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.07% of Royal Bank of Canada worth $88,754,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 10.6% in the first quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 21,119,042 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,023,058,000 after purchasing an additional 2,029,807 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 3.4% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 18,804,912 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,794,801,000 after acquiring an additional 621,046 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,583,609,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. FMR LLC now owns 15,683,269 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,499,860,000 after purchasing an additional 1,211,281 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,642,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,111,910,000 after purchasing an additional 310,191 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on RY shares. Credit Suisse Group boosted their target price on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 25th. StockNews.com raised Royal Bank of Canada from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Royal Bank of Canada from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.60.

Royal Bank of Canada Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Royal Bank of Canada stock opened at $87.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. Royal Bank of Canada has a 52 week low of $77.90 and a 52 week high of $104.72. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $85.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.02 billion, a PE ratio of 11.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.84.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $10.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.54 billion. Royal Bank of Canada had a net margin of 13.51% and a return on equity of 15.43%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Royal Bank of Canada will post 8.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.019 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 25th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.68%. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Bank of Canada’s payout ratio is 51.62%.

Royal Bank of Canada Profile

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.