Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $162.00.

A number of analysts recently commented on RY shares. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Cibc World Mkts cut Royal Bank Of Canada from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Cowen raised Royal Bank Of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, Natl Bk Canada raised Royal Bank Of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 1st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Bank Of Canada

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RY. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 2.0% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 66,338,321 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,777,472,000 after purchasing an additional 1,329,637 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 31,812,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,184,220,000 after purchasing an additional 296,978 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Royal Bank Of Canada in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,599,262,000. Canerector Inc. lifted its stake in Royal Bank Of Canada by 20,412.0% in the 3rd quarter. Canerector Inc. now owns 13,332,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,964,188,000 after buying an additional 13,267,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec grew its holdings in Royal Bank Of Canada by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 12,656,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,423,464,000 after buying an additional 420,466 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 Up 0.1%

Royal Bank Of Canada stock opened at $171.38 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $154.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $143.62. Royal Bank Of Canada has a 1-year low of $106.10 and a 1-year high of $171.84. The company has a market cap of $240.02 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The financial services provider reported $2.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by $0.25. Royal Bank Of Canada had a return on equity of 16.83% and a net margin of 14.83%.The company had revenue of $12.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.07 earnings per share. Royal Bank Of Canada’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Royal Bank Of Canada will post 9.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Bank Of Canada Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 24th. Investors of record on Monday, January 26th will be given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 26th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. This is a boost from Royal Bank Of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.54. Royal Bank Of Canada’s payout ratio is presently 44.07%.

About Royal Bank Of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE: RY) is a diversified financial services company and one of Canada’s largest banks. Founded in 1864 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, the firm is now headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. It provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, and institutional clients through a network of branches, digital platforms and international offices.

RBC operates across several principal business segments including personal and commercial banking, wealth management, insurance, investor and treasury services, capital markets, and global asset management.