Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Position Lessened by Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.

Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd. decreased its stake in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 14.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 91,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,223 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada accounts for 3.8% of Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.’s holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $8,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in RY. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 5.3% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 817,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $90,144,000 after buying an additional 41,346 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 5.7% during the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 7,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $775,000 after buying an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL raised its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 2.0% during 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 last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 47.1% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Thomas White International Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 4.6% during 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.02% of the company’s stock.

Royal Bank of Canada Price Performance

Royal Bank of Canada stock traded up $0.99 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $88.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 884,633 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,518,098. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $85.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $90.95. Royal Bank of Canada has a 12 month low of $77.90 and a 12 month high of $104.72. The company has a market capitalization of $123.41 billion, a PE ratio of 11.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.84.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $10.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.54 billion. Royal Bank of Canada had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 13.51%. 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 26th will be issued a dividend of $1.019 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 25th. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Bank of Canada’s payout ratio is presently 51.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Royal Bank of Canada from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 14th. Credit Suisse Group lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 25th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of 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 issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Royal Bank of Canada currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.60.

Royal Bank of Canada Company 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.