Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) have been given an average rating of “Buy” by the seven research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $156.50.

RY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Securities cut Royal Bank of Canada from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 1st. Barclays upgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $195.00 to $193.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Bank of Canada

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RY. Addison Advisors LLC raised its position in Royal Bank of Canada by 9.5% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $118,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 426 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,799 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 4,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $519,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in Royal Bank of Canada by 1.6% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $768,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. 45.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RY opened at $117.94 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $121.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $120.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $166.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.28, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Royal Bank of Canada has a 52-week low of $93.97 and a 52-week high of $128.05.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Investors of record on Monday, January 27th will be given a dividend of $1.0522 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.21 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. Royal Bank of Canada’s payout ratio is presently 49.76%.

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.