Analysts Set Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) PT at C$163.38

Shares of Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) (NYSE:RY) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$163.38.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Desjardins boosted their price target on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$156.00 to C$163.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$162.00 to C$180.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Royal Bank of Canada from C$168.00 to C$165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Cormark raised their target price on Royal Bank of Canada from C$166.00 to C$171.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Royal Bank of Canada from C$145.00 to C$150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th.

Royal Bank of Canada Stock Performance

Shares of RY stock opened at C$172.75 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of C$243.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.27, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.84. Royal Bank of Canada has a 52-week low of C$115.57 and a 52-week high of C$175.04. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of C$168.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of C$154.36.

Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) (NYSE:RY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The financial services provider reported C$3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of C$2.95 by C$0.31. The company had revenue of C$14.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of C$14.27 billion. Royal Bank of Canada had a return on equity of 13.68% and a net margin of 28.67%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Royal Bank of Canada will post 12.3454675 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Bank of Canada Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 24th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Senior Officer Douglas Antony Guzman sold 7,500 shares of Royal Bank of Canada stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$166.96, for a total transaction of C$1,252,207.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 25 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$4,174.03. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. In related news, Senior Officer Douglas Antony Guzman sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$166.96, for a total value of C$1,252,207.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 25 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$4,174.03. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, Director David Ian Mckay sold 74,852 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$164.59, for a total transaction of C$12,320,115.24. Insiders have sold 144,770 shares of company stock worth $23,959,265 in the last three months.

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.