Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Makes New Investment in Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group opened a new position in Royalty Pharma, acquiring 1,751,842 shares worth about $61.8 million (roughly 0.30% of the company) in Q3 per its SEC filing.
• Company insiders have been net sellers: EVP Marshall Urist sold 20,000 shares and CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 34,791 shares (Coyne’s holdings fell 43.2%), with insiders offloading 737,078 shares worth ~$29.9 million over the past 90 days.
• Dividend bump and bullish analyst view: Royalty Pharma raised its quarterly dividend to $0.235 (annualized $0.94, ~2.1% yield), while analysts overall rate the stock a “Buy” with an average target of $48.67 and several firms raising ratings/targets.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,751,842 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $61,805,000. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. owned approximately 0.30% of Royalty Pharma as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Royalty Pharma by 868.1% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 881 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares during the last quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new position in Royalty Pharma in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Royalty Pharma during the third quarter worth approximately $54,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 44.3% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,060 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 16.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,499 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $88,000 after buying an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.35% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Marshall Urist sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.09, for a total value of $821,800.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 34,791 shares of Royalty Pharma stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.78, for a total value of $1,627,522.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 45,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,140,699.58. This trade represents a 43.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 737,078 shares of company stock worth $29,862,002 in the last ninety days. 18.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Royalty Pharma Stock Performance

NASDAQ:RPRX opened at $45.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 2.40. The firm has a market cap of $26.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.81 and a beta of 0.40. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $43.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.56. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 1-year low of $29.66 and a 1-year high of $47.86.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $621.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $839.97 million. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 32.38% and a return on equity of 28.21%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 4.49 EPS for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 20th were given a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 20th. This is an increase from Royalty Pharma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Royalty Pharma's payout ratio is 69.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $61.00 target price on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Leerink Partners set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. UBS Group raised Royalty Pharma from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $49.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Royalty Pharma from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Friday, February 27th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $48.67.

Royalty Pharma Company Profile

Royalty Pharma plc is a specialty finance company that acquires biopharmaceutical royalty interests and provides non-dilutive financing to drug developers and rights holders. The firm purchases future royalty streams, milestone-contingent payments and other revenue rights linked to approved and late-stage pharmaceutical and biotechnology products. By paying upfront consideration for these rights, Royalty Pharma seeks to generate long-term cash flows tied to the commercial performance of a diversified portfolio of medicines.

The company's transaction structures include outright royalty purchases, structured financings and milestone arrangements tailored to the needs of innovator companies, academic institutions and investors.

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