Palisade Asset Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Palisade Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,157 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 170 shares during the quarter. Palisade Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $9,927,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in Royal Bank of Canada in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd bought a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 64.7% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new stake in Royal Bank of Canada in the third quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 131.0% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. 45.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royal Bank of Canada Trading Up 0.8 %

Royal Bank of Canada stock traded up $0.83 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $101.85. The company had a trading volume of 419,330 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,219,463. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $144.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $99.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $95.65. Royal Bank of Canada has a 1 year low of $77.90 and a 1 year high of $103.88.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $9.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.10 billion. Royal Bank of Canada had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 12.43%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Royal Bank of Canada will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.0207 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. This is a positive change from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on RY shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Friday, April 5th. StockNews.com lowered Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Royal Bank of Canada in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.