The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Trims Position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY - Free Report) TSE: RY by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,473,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 522,138 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada accounts for about 1.2% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest position. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.81% of Royal Bank of Canada worth $1,385,233,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the fourth quarter valued at $1,296,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter valued at $31,947,000. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 173.9% during the fourth quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 15,833 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,908,000 after buying an additional 10,053 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,860 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $345,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. 45.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RY. CIBC raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "neutral" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Royal Bank of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Royal Bank of Canada from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $156.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Price Performance

RY stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $119.99. 647,922 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,103,035. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $114.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $119.63. Royal Bank of Canada has a 12 month low of $97.72 and a 12 month high of $128.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $169.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.53, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.82.

Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 24th will be given a dividend of $1.0251 per share. This represents a $4.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada's payout ratio is currently 46.18%.

Royal Bank of Canada Company Profile

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.