Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Receives Average Recommendation of "Buy" from Brokerages

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY - Get Free Report) TSE: RY has been given a consensus recommendation of "Buy" by the nine brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $156.50.

RY has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. StockNews.com raised Royal Bank of Canada from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, CIBC upgraded Royal Bank of Canada from a "neutral" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Bank of Canada

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RY. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 2,272.7% in the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 261 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 45.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 0.1 %

Royal Bank of Canada stock traded up $0.12 on Tuesday, hitting $117.79. 787,287 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,102,137. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $114.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.68. The firm has a market cap of $166.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Royal Bank of Canada has a 1 year low of $96.52 and a 1 year high of $128.05.

Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 24th will be issued 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 yield of 3.48%. Royal Bank of Canada's payout ratio is currently 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.