Royal Bank Of Canada $RY Stake Cut by Franklin Resources Inc.

Key Points

• Franklin Resources trimmed its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 5.7% in Q3, selling 144,686 shares and holding 2,409,891 shares worth about $355.1 million (≈0.17% of the company).
• RBC beat quarterly estimates with EPS of $2.94 (vs. $2.81 est.) and revenue of $13.18 billion, and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64 (annualized $6.56) for a ~4.0% yield.
• Analysts lean positive (11 Buys, 3 Holds) with an average price target of $162 and a “Moderate Buy” rating; the stock trades near $165 with a market cap of $230.7 billion and a P/E of 15.8.

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its holdings in Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY - Free Report) TSE: RY by 5.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,409,891 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 144,686 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of Royal Bank Of Canada worth $355,110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 33.1% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,313 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 575 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 60.9% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,779 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,321,000 after buying an additional 4,460 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Royal Bank Of Canada by 57.7% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,284 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $695,000 after acquiring an additional 1,934 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in Royal Bank Of Canada by 37.8% during the second quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 11,590 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,525,000 after acquiring an additional 3,179 shares during the period. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. lifted its holdings in Royal Bank Of Canada by 58.2% in the second quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 3,158 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $415,000 after acquiring an additional 1,162 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.31% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on RY shares. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. TD Securities raised Royal Bank Of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. TD Cowen upgraded Royal Bank Of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Zacks Research downgraded Royal Bank Of Canada from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Bank Of Canada currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $162.00.

Royal Bank Of Canada Price Performance

NYSE RY opened at $165.07 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $169.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.55. Royal Bank Of Canada has a 52 week low of $106.10 and a 52 week high of $176.19. The stock has a market cap of $230.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY - Get Free Report) TSE: RY last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $13.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.60 billion. Royal Bank Of Canada had a return on equity of 17.12% and a net margin of 15.28%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.62 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Royal Bank Of Canada will post 9.16 EPS for the current year.

Royal Bank Of Canada Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 23rd. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. Royal Bank Of Canada's payout ratio is presently 45.93%.

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.

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