Blair William & Co. IL Raises Position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Blair William & Co. IL lifted its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,150 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the quarter. Blair William & Co. IL’s holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $2,669,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of RY. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,183,549 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,136,056,000 after acquiring an additional 1,104,975 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 11,112,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,338,156,000 after purchasing an additional 921,276 shares in the last quarter. Mufg Securities Canada LTD. lifted its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 72.0% during the 4th quarter. Mufg Securities Canada LTD. now owns 2,160,865 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $260,373,000 after purchasing an additional 904,909 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 360.8% during the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 881,128 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $106,123,000 after purchasing an additional 689,904 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Royal Bank of Canada in the fourth quarter valued at $70,429,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on RY shares. StockNews.com raised Royal Bank of Canada from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Royal Bank of Canada from $195.00 to $193.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, CIBC reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Royal Bank of Canada presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $156.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 0.5 %

Royal Bank of Canada stock opened at $112.66 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $159.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.64, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. Royal Bank of Canada has a fifty-two week low of $95.84 and a fifty-two week high of $128.05. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $117.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $120.95.

Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 24th will be given a dividend of $1.0251 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 24th. This represents a $4.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.64%. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.96%.

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.