Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Should You Buy?

Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE:RY) (TSE:RY) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 1,725,525 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 43% from the previous session’s volume of 1,207,125 shares.The stock last traded at $122.22 and had previously closed at $121.02.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Royal Bank of Canada Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $172.69 billion, a PE ratio of 14.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $122.45 and its 200 day moving average is $119.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86.

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 paid a dividend of $1.0522 per share. This represents a $4.21 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. This is an increase from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada’s dividend payout ratio is 50.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of RY. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 75.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,866,021 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,229,834,000 after purchasing an additional 7,702,585 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Royal Bank of Canada by 0.9% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 13,622,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,706,833,000 after acquiring an additional 124,348 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Royal Bank of Canada by 2.2% during the second 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 acquiring an additional 256,023 shares during the last quarter. 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 valued at $1,118,150,000 after purchasing an additional 190,341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royal Bank of Canada by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,390,914 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $805,616,000 after purchasing an additional 541,760 shares during the period. 45.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.