Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) Given Average Recommendation of "Buy" by Brokerages

Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY - Get Free Report) NYSE: RY has been given an average rating of "Buy" by the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$183.75.

Several equities analysts have commented on RY shares. Scotiabank raised Royal Bank of Canada to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. TD Securities reduced their target price on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$180.00 to C$178.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$195.00 to C$180.00 in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, CIBC upped their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$182.00 to C$183.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David Ian Mckay sold 20,304 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$160.27, for a total transaction of C$3,254,042.89. Also, Senior Officer Graeme Ashley Hepworth sold 308 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of C$161.89, for a total value of C$49,862.12. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 62,330 shares of company stock valued at $10,312,755.

Royal Bank of Canada Trading Up 0.4%

TSE:RY opened at C$175.33 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of C$169.52 and a 200-day moving average price of C$169.62. The stock has a market cap of C$248.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.84. Royal Bank of Canada has a 12 month low of C$140.53 and a 12 month high of C$180.45.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, July 24th will be given a dividend of $1.54 per share. This represents a $6.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.51%. This is a boost from Royal Bank of Canada's previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. Royal Bank of Canada's dividend payout ratio is 49.49%.

Royal Bank of Canada Company Profile

Royal Bank of Canada is one of the two largest banks in Canada. It is a diversified financial services company, offering personal and commercial banking, wealth-management services, insurance, corporate banking, and capital markets services. The bank is concentrated in Canada, with additional operations in the U.S.

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