CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Buys 92,464 Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its stake in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY - Free Report) TSE: RY by 9.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,071,657 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 92,464 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned about 0.08% of Royal Bank of Canada worth $129,031,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in RY. Fairfield Bush & CO. lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 21,824 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,630,000 after acquiring an additional 538 shares during the last quarter. Coleford Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the fourth quarter worth about $24,730,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Royal Bank of Canada by 397.9% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 416,409 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $50,181,000 after acquiring an additional 332,779 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 64.5% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,444 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $897,000 after purchasing an additional 2,920 shares during the period. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 10,810 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 383 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on RY. CIBC upgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "neutral" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Royal Bank of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Royal Bank of Canada from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $156.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Up 2.0 %

RY traded up $2.36 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $117.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,848,350 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,110,699. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $165.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.22, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.82. The stock's 50-day moving average is $114.76 and its 200-day moving average is $119.78. Royal Bank of Canada has a 1 year low of $95.84 and a 1 year high of $128.05.

Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 24th will be given a $1.0251 dividend. This represents a $4.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.18%.

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.