Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Short Interest Up 80.4% in May

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY - Get Free Report) TSE: RY was the target of a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,740,000 shares, a growth of 80.4% from the May 15th total of 4,290,000 shares. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,320,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.9 days.

Royal Bank of Canada Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE RY traded down $1.02 on Friday, reaching $127.80. 783,785 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,142,789. The business's fifty day moving average price is $121.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $119.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $180.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.89. 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 fifty-two week low of $102.52 and a fifty-two week high of $129.46.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY - Get Free Report) TSE: RY last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.25 by ($0.05). Royal Bank of Canada had a return on equity of 15.26% and a net margin of 12.08%. The company had revenue of $11.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.77 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.92 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Royal Bank of Canada will post 9.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 24th will be paid a $1.1152 dividend. This represents a $4.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 24th. This is a positive change from Royal Bank of Canada's previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Royal Bank of Canada's dividend payout ratio is 49.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Bank of Canada

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of RY. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 2,272.7% in the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 261 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. National Bank Financial lowered Royal Bank of Canada from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. CIBC reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Cibc World Mkts raised Royal Bank of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on Royal Bank of Canada in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "sector outperform" rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Bank of Canada presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $193.00.

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.

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