Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 4,838 Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 5.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 81,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,838 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $7,796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Syverson Strege & Co bought a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Delta Asset Management LLC TN acquired a new stake in Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Money Concepts Capital Corp bought a new position in Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 1st quarter valued at $72,000. 42.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 0.5 %

RY stock opened at $90.84 on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada has a twelve month low of $83.63 and a twelve month high of $104.72. 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 is $94.78 and its 200-day moving average is $95.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $126.83 billion, a PE ratio of 11.78, a P/E/G 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. Investors of record on Thursday, October 26th will be given a dividend of $1.019 per share. This is a positive change from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 firms have recently commented on RY. Barclays upped 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. StockNews.com lowered Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Credit Suisse Group increased their target price on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 25th. Finally, CIBC lowered shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.