Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Position in Royal Bank Of Canada $RY

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) by 84.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 29,300 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Royal Bank Of Canada were worth $902,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Royal Bank Of Canada in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Key Financial Inc grew its position in Royal Bank Of Canada by 63.0% in the first quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Maseco LLP lifted its position in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 355.0% during the first quarter. Maseco LLP now owns 182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Royal Bank Of Canada by 55.3% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. 45.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Bank Of Canada Stock Down 0.3%

RY stock opened at $209.44 on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada has a twelve month low of $127.38 and a twelve month high of $218.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market capitalization of $290.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.82, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $203.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.18.

Royal Bank Of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $12.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.74 billion. Royal Bank Of Canada had a net margin of 15.92% and a return on equity of 17.68%. The business’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.12 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Royal Bank Of Canada will post 11.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Bank Of Canada Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 27th will be issued a dividend of $1.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 27th. This represents a $7.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. This is an increase from Royal Bank Of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. Royal Bank Of Canada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RY. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Royal Bank Of Canada from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a report on Monday, June 1st. Argus set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Royal Bank Of Canada from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report on Friday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.00.

About Royal Bank Of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE: RY) is a diversified financial services company and one of Canada’s largest banks. Founded in 1864 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, the firm is now headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. It provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, and institutional clients through a network of branches, digital platforms and international offices.

RBC operates across several principal business segments including personal and commercial banking, wealth management, insurance, investor and treasury services, capital markets, and global asset management.