Desjardins Forecasts Lower Earnings for Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) (NYSE:RY) – Equities research analysts at Desjardins decreased their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Royal Bank of Canada in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, February 4th. Desjardins analyst D. Young now forecasts that the financial services provider will post earnings per share of $3.20 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $3.22. The consensus estimate for Royal Bank of Canada’s current full-year earnings is $12.35 per share.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on RY. TD Securities cut Royal Bank of Canada from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from C$178.00 to C$180.00 in a research note on Friday, November 15th. CIBC raised their price objective on Royal Bank of Canada from C$167.00 to C$176.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Royal Bank of Canada from C$195.00 to C$193.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Royal Bank of Canada from C$188.00 to C$191.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, National Bankshares boosted their price target on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$181.00 to C$188.00 in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Royal Bank of Canada has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of C$176.58.

Royal Bank of Canada Price Performance

Shares of RY opened at C$170.44 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is C$174.63 and its 200 day moving average price is C$167.66. Royal Bank of Canada has a 12-month low of C$127.60 and a 12-month high of C$180.45. The stock has a market capitalization of C$240.32 billion, a PE ratio of 15.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.84.

Insider Transactions at Royal Bank of Canada

In related news, Director David Ian Mckay sold 20,304 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$175.12, for a total transaction of C$3,555,721.76. Also, Senior Officer Douglas Antony Guzman sold 1,538 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$177.09, for a total transaction of C$272,363.80. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 25 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$4,427.24. This represents a 98.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. In the last three months, insiders sold 22,150 shares of company stock valued at $3,882,024.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.48 per share. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.47%. This is a positive change from Royal Bank of Canada’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada’s payout ratio is presently 50.31%.

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.