Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $129.46 and last traded at $129.05, with a volume of 1025814 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $128.86.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on RY shares. 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. Wall Street Zen downgraded Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. CIBC reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Scotiabank started coverage on Royal Bank of Canada in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, National Bank Financial downgraded Royal Bank of Canada from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $156.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a market cap of $179.15 billion, a PE ratio of 15.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.89. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $118.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $119.65.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by ($0.05). Royal Bank of Canada had a net margin of 12.08% and a return on equity of 15.26%. The business had revenue of $11.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.92 EPS. Royal Bank of Canada’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Royal Bank of Canada will post 9.16 EPS for the current year.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, July 24th will be issued a $1.1152 dividend. This represents a $4.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 24th. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Royal Bank of Canada’s payout ratio is currently 46.18%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Bank of Canada

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RY. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the fourth quarter worth about $2,425,519,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 129.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,063,761 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $796,227,000 after purchasing an additional 3,990,839 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 5.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 62,571,520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,048,307,000 after purchasing an additional 3,387,971 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 104.6% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 6,346,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $715,043,000 after purchasing an additional 3,244,266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 31.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,382,278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,027,061,000 after purchasing an additional 1,991,364 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.31% of the company’s stock.

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.