Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) (NYSE:RY) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is C$176.58.

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays upgraded Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$195.00 to C$193.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$167.00 to C$197.00 in a research note on Monday, November 25th. TD Securities cut shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from C$178.00 to C$180.00 in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, CIBC boosted their price objective on Royal Bank of Canada from C$167.00 to C$176.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Senior Officer Douglas Antony Guzman sold 1,538 shares of Royal Bank of Canada stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$177.09, for a total transaction of C$272,363.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 25 shares in the company, valued at C$4,427.24. The trade was a 98.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 0.8 %

Royal Bank of Canada stock opened at C$174.28 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of C$174.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of C$165.32. The stock has a market capitalization of C$245.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, 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$127.60 and a 12-month high of C$180.45.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a $1.48 dividend. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.31%.

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.