Brokerages Set Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) Target Price at C$176.58

Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) (NYSE:RY) has received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the eleven ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and three have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$176.58.

RY has been the subject of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Royal Bank of Canada from C$195.00 to C$193.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. CIBC lifted their price target on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$167.00 to C$176.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$188.00 to C$191.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Royal Bank of Canada from C$167.00 to C$197.00 in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Royal Bank of Canada from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st.

Royal Bank of Canada Price Performance

Royal Bank of Canada stock opened at C$174.36 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is C$173.73 and its 200 day moving average price is C$162.22. Royal Bank of Canada has a 1-year low of C$127.60 and a 1-year high of C$180.45. The company has a market cap of C$245.85 billion, a PE ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.84.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $1.48 dividend. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. This is a positive change from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.31%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Senior Officer Douglas Antony Guzman sold 7,500 shares of the 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 directly owns 25 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$4,174.03. This trade represents a 99.67 % decrease in their ownership of the 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.