16,700 Shares in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Bought by AJOVista LLC

AJOVista LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 16,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,689,000. Royal Bank of Canada accounts for approximately 2.1% of AJOVista LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in Royal Bank of Canada during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd bought a new position in Royal Bank of Canada during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new position in Royal Bank of Canada during the third quarter valued at about $44,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 64.7% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 131.0% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. 45.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Bank of Canada Price Performance

RY stock traded up $1.95 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $101.17. 2,470,596 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,154,479. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $99.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Royal Bank of Canada has a 1-year low of $77.90 and a 1-year high of $103.88. The company has a market cap of $143.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.74, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.86.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.05. Royal Bank of Canada had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 12.43%. The business had revenue of $9.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.10 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Royal Bank of Canada will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.0207 per share. This is a boost from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio is 25.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on RY. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Royal Bank of Canada in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Barclays assumed coverage on Royal Bank of Canada in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised Royal Bank of Canada from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a report on Friday, April 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $137.67.

Royal Bank of Canada 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.