Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. Takes Position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. bought a new position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY - Free Report) TSE: RY during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 31,900 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,844,000. Royal Bank of Canada comprises 1.5% of Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Royal Bank of Canada in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. CIBC raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "neutral" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Royal Bank of Canada presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $156.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Trading Up 0.2%

RY stock traded up $0.26 during trading on Friday, hitting $120.09. The company had a trading volume of 1,540,197 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,098,962. The firm has a market capitalization of $169.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.54, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.89. Royal Bank of Canada has a 52-week low of $102.44 and a 52-week high of $128.05. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $115.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.33. 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 Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 24th will be given a dividend of $1.0251 per share. This represents a $4.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.18%.

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.