Short Interest in Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Drops By 25.6%

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY - Get Free Report) TSE: RY was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 7,910,000 shares, a decrease of 25.6% from the November 15th total of 10,630,000 shares. Approximately 0.6% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,060,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 7.5 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. TD Securities cut Royal Bank of Canada from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Royal Bank of Canada from $195.00 to $193.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Bank of Canada has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $156.50.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE:RY traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $124.50. 436,968 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,076,085. Royal Bank of Canada has a fifty-two week low of $93.97 and a fifty-two week high of $128.05. The company has a market capitalization of $176.00 billion, a PE ratio of 15.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.86. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $124.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $116.81.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 27th will be issued a $1.0522 dividend. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada's previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.21 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada's payout ratio is presently 52.91%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 16.7% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 20,232,204 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,141,681,000 after acquiring an additional 2,901,033 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 75.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,866,021 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,229,834,000 after purchasing an additional 7,702,585 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 0.9% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 13,622,472 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,706,833,000 after purchasing an additional 124,348 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Royal Bank of Canada by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 12,127,506 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,289,274,000 after buying an additional 256,023 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 10,504,593 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,118,150,000 after acquiring an additional 190,341 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.31% of the company's stock.

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.