Baskin Financial Services Inc. Sells 26,810 Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Baskin Financial Services Inc. lowered its position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 37.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,599 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 26,810 shares during the quarter. Baskin Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $5,687,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new position in Royal Bank of Canada in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Grove Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the first quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 293.8% in the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 20th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Royal Bank of Canada in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $151.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Bank of Canada has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:RY traded up $1.13 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $125.54. 119,454 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,044,583. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $119.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $109.97. Royal Bank of Canada has a 52 week low of $77.90 and a 52 week high of $125.64. The company has a market cap of $177.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.86.

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.23. Royal Bank of Canada had a net margin of 12.28% and a return on equity of 15.17%. The firm had revenue of $10.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.40 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Royal Bank of Canada will post 8.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 24th will be issued a dividend of $1.028 per share. This represents a $4.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.99%.

Royal Bank of Canada Company 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.