Royal Bank of Canada Sells 593,343 Shares of Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR $SHEL

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada has reduced its holdings in Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR by 13.3%, selling 593,343 shares and now owns approximately 0.13% of the company valued at $283.9 million.
• Several institutional investors increased their positions in Shell, with GQG Partners LLC raising theirs by an incredible 42,743.3%, now owning 2.87 million shares worth $210.2 million.
• Shell recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.716 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.9%, with a current dividend payout ratio of 64.41%.

Royal Bank of Canada cut its position in shares of Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR (NYSE:SHEL - Free Report) by 13.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,874,394 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 593,343 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned 0.13% of Shell worth $283,914,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in Shell during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Avalon Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Shell in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Shell by 103.4% in the 1st quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 356 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Shell by 102.9% in the 1st quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 420 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Shell in the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. 28.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Shell Stock Performance

Shell stock traded down $0.69 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $71.62. 4,091,984 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,857,873. The firm has a market cap of $210.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.13, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $72.04 and a 200 day moving average of $69.05. Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR has a 12 month low of $58.54 and a 12 month high of $74.21.

Shell (NYSE:SHEL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The energy company reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $66.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $69.31 billion. Shell had a return on equity of 10.67% and a net margin of 4.93%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Shell Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.716 dividend. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Shell's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SHEL. Melius Research began coverage on Shell in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Shell from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Shell in a report on Friday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Shell from $80.00 to $79.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, HSBC restated a "hold" rating and issued a $78.30 price objective (down previously from $78.90) on shares of Shell in a report on Monday, August 4th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Shell has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.71.

About Shell

Shell plc operates as an energy and petrochemical company Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa, the United States, and Rest of the Americas. The company operates through Integrated Gas, Upstream, Marketing, Chemicals and Products, and Renewables and Energy Solutions segments. It explores for and extracts crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids; markets and transports oil and gas; produces gas-to-liquids fuels and other products; and operates upstream and midstream infrastructure to deliver gas to market.