Erica Lesley Nielsen Sells 148 Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) Stock

Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) (NYSE:RY) Senior Officer Erica Lesley Nielsen sold 148 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$167.69, for a total value of C$24,817.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 598 shares in the company, valued at C$100,277.42.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Performance

TSE:RY traded down C$0.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching C$166.91. The stock had a trading volume of 936,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,816,452. Royal Bank of Canada has a one year low of C$107.92 and a one year high of C$169.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of C$155.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of C$145.17. The stock has a market capitalization of C$235.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.80, a P/E/G ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 0.84.

Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) (NYSE:RY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The financial services provider reported C$3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of C$2.95 by C$0.31. The company had revenue of C$14.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of C$14.27 billion. Royal Bank of Canada had a net margin of 28.67% and a return on equity of 13.68%.

Royal Bank of Canada Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 24th will be paid a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RY has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Securities lifted their target price on Royal Bank of Canada from C$171.00 to C$178.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Royal Bank of Canada from C$151.00 to C$165.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Scotiabank cut their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$157.00 to C$154.00 in a report on Monday, August 19th. Argus raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$168.00 to C$165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Bank of Canada currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of C$163.38.

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.