Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Buys New Shares in Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise has acquired 8,563 shares of the Royal Bank of Canada valued at approximately $964,000, marking a new investment during the first quarter.
• Royal Bank of Canada plans to increase its quarterly dividend from $1.03 to $1.1152 per share, resulting in a yield of 3.5% for shareholders recorded on July 24th.
• Despite a year-over-year revenue increase of 10.7%, Royal Bank of Canada reported a quarterly EPS of $2.20, falling short of the consensus estimate of $2.25.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY - Free Report) TSE: RY during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 8,563 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $964,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. TD Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Royal Bank Of Canada by 0.9% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 31,515,404 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,549,520,000 after acquiring an additional 277,466 shares during the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 8,891,023 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,071,536,000 after purchasing an additional 169,437 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,382,278 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,027,061,000 after purchasing an additional 1,991,364 shares during the period. Fiera Capital Corp grew its holdings in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 4,741,694 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $534,661,000 after purchasing an additional 108,484 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Royal Bank Of Canada by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,789,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $456,680,000 after purchasing an additional 172,829 shares in the last quarter. 45.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Bank Of Canada Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE RY opened at $128.41 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $180.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.27, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.89. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $129.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $121.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Royal Bank Of Canada has a 52 week low of $102.89 and a 52 week high of $134.26.

Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY - Get Free Report) TSE: RY last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.25 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $11.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.77 billion. Royal Bank Of Canada had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 13.37%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.92 EPS. Equities research 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 Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.1152 per share. This is a boost from Royal Bank Of Canada's previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 24th. This represents a $4.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. Royal Bank Of Canada's payout ratio is 50.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on RY shares. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Royal Bank Of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 31st. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "sector outperform" rating for the company. CIBC reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, National Bank Financial cut Royal Bank Of Canada from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Bank Of Canada presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $193.00.

Royal Bank Of Canada Profile

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.

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