Vanguard Group Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,183,549 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,104,975 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 4.18% of Royal Bank of Canada worth $7,136,056,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of RY. FMR LLC grew its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 75.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,866,021 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,229,834,000 after purchasing an additional 7,702,585 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 11,112,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,338,156,000 after purchasing an additional 921,276 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,390,914 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $805,616,000 after purchasing an additional 541,760 shares in the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 3,583,817 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $431,892,000 after purchasing an additional 15,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,548,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $427,589,000 after purchasing an additional 64,450 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on RY shares. StockNews.com raised Royal Bank of Canada from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. CIBC reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Royal Bank of Canada from $195.00 to $193.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $156.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE RY opened at $113.71 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $160.52 billion, a PE ratio of 13.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.88. 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 $95.84 and a 52-week high of $128.05. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $117.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.28.

Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 24th will be given a $1.0251 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 24th. This represents a $4.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.61%. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.96%.

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.