Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd. Sells 15,223 Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd. lessened its stake in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 14.3% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 91,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,223 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada accounts for about 3.8% of Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.’s holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $8,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RY. Syverson Strege & Co acquired a new stake in Royal Bank of Canada in the first quarter worth $28,000. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in Royal Bank of Canada during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Money Concepts Capital Corp acquired a new stake in Royal Bank of Canada during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 40.1% during the second quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Finally, WASHINGTON TRUST Co acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the second quarter worth about $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on RY shares. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 14th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group raised their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.60.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE RY traded up $0.99 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $88.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 884,633 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,518,098. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Royal Bank of Canada has a fifty-two week low of $77.90 and a fifty-two week high of $104.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.41, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $85.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $90.95.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.14. Royal Bank of Canada had a net margin of 13.51% and a return on equity of 15.43%. The firm had revenue of $10.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.54 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Royal Bank of Canada will post 8.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 26th will be given a $1.019 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 25th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.63%. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Bank of Canada’s payout ratio is currently 51.62%.

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.