Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Decreases Stake in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC decreased its position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 0.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 95,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 228 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $9,151,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RY. Vident Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Vident Investment Advisory LLC now owns 9,935 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,095,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC now owns 2,641 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd grew its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 12,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,212,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 17,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,669,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors grew its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 3,872 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.02% of the company’s stock.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:RY opened at $90.44 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $94.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $95.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. Royal Bank of Canada has a one year low of $83.63 and a one year high of $104.72. The company has a market cap of $126.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.73, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.83.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. CIBC downgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 16th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Credit Suisse Group raised their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Bank of Canada presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.60.

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.