Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Shares Sold by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,995,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 132,006 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada comprises approximately 1.3% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.85% of Royal Bank of Canada worth $1,498,179,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Royal Bank of Canada during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 110.3% in the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Royal Bank of Canada in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. 45.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Performance

NYSE:RY opened at $124.30 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $175.72 billion, a PE ratio of 15.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.86. Royal Bank of Canada has a fifty-two week low of $85.02 and a fifty-two week high of $126.96. The company has a fifty day moving average of $123.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $114.89.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $10.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.40 billion. Royal Bank of Canada had a net margin of 12.28% and a return on equity of 15.17%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Royal Bank of Canada will post 8.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 24th were issued a dividend of $1.028 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 24th. This represents a $4.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Royal Bank of Canada’s payout ratio is currently 50.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on RY. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $151.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Royal Bank of Canada from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $142.50.

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.