Clearbridge Investments LLC Has $184.48 Million Position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,734,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 35,221 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Royal Bank of Canada worth $184,477,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 55,695,544 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,618,566,000 after buying an additional 964,898 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 16.7% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 20,232,204 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,141,681,000 after buying an additional 2,901,033 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 2.2% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 12,127,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,289,274,000 after acquiring an additional 256,023 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,006,207 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,118,448,000 after acquiring an additional 415,293 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 10,504,593 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,118,150,000 after acquiring an additional 190,341 shares during the last quarter. 45.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Performance

RY stock opened at $123.80 on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada has a 1-year low of $77.90 and a 1-year high of $125.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $175.19 billion, a PE ratio of 15.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.86. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $116.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $108.38.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.23. Royal Bank of Canada had a return on equity of 15.17% and a net margin of 12.28%. The business had revenue of $10.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.40 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Royal Bank of Canada will post 8.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 24th will be given a dividend of $1.028 per share. This represents a $4.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio is 51.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RY has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group assumed coverage on Royal Bank of Canada in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Royal Bank of Canada from $151.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Argus boosted their target price on Royal Bank of Canada from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Bank of Canada presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $142.50.

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.