Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. Purchases 5,017 Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 106,474 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,017 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada comprises approximately 3.6% of Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $10,770,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cigna Investments Inc. New increased its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New now owns 26,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,661,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,628 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $317,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 13,008 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,315,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 7,830 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $792,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the period. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC increased its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 4,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.31% of the company’s stock.

Royal Bank of Canada Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of RY traded down $1.76 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $97.09. The stock had a trading volume of 2,743,500 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,235,933. Royal Bank of Canada has a fifty-two week low of $77.90 and a fifty-two week high of $103.88. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $99.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.60. The firm has a market cap of $137.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.05. Royal Bank of Canada had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 14.74%. The company had revenue of $9.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.10 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Royal Bank of Canada will post 8.45 EPS 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. Investors of record on Thursday, April 25th will be issued 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 4.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on RY shares. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. 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. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Barclays started coverage on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus 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.