Ritholtz Wealth Management Purchases 3,396 Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY)

Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY - Free Report) TSE: RY by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,396 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management's holdings in Royal Bank of Canada were worth $4,811,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Royal Bank of Canada in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Royal Bank of Canada during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 110.3% during the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 225 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.31% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on RY shares. TD Securities cut shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. StockNews.com cut shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from $195.00 to $193.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $156.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Performance

NYSE:RY traded up $0.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $120.46. 1,588,793 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,161,299. Royal Bank of Canada has a one year low of $93.97 and a one year high of $128.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $122.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $170.38 billion, a PE ratio of 14.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.87.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Investors of record on Monday, January 27th will be given a dividend of $1.0522 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. This represents a $4.21 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada's previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Royal Bank of Canada's dividend payout ratio is currently 49.76%.

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.