Eventide Asset Management LLC Raises Stake in Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX

Key Points

• Eventide Asset Management boosted its stake in Royalty Pharma by 41.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 1.30 million shares valued at about $50.2 million.
• Several other institutional investors also increased holdings, and hedge funds and other institutions now own 54.35% of Royalty Pharma’s stock.
• Insiders have been selling shares recently, including CFO Terrance P. Coyne and Director Gregory Norden, while analysts remain generally positive with an average "Buy" rating and price target of $53.71.

Eventide Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX - Free Report) by 41.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,296,826 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 380,337 shares during the quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC owned 0.22% of Royalty Pharma worth $50,183,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 16.2% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 172,418 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $6,662,000 after purchasing an additional 24,048 shares in the last quarter. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new position in Royalty Pharma in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,923,000. Regal Partners Ltd lifted its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Regal Partners Ltd now owns 1,435,126 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $50,631,000 after purchasing an additional 89,930 shares in the last quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Royalty Pharma in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,875,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 812,663 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $31,604,000 after purchasing an additional 36,664 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.35% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Royalty Pharma

In related news, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 64,399 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.98, for a total transaction of $3,476,258.02. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Gregory Norden sold 3,045 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total value of $161,385.00. Following the sale, the director owned 191,803 shares in the company, valued at $10,165,559. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 199,185 shares of company stock worth $10,082,926 in the last three months. Insiders own 18.84% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on RPRX shares. UBS Group boosted their price target on Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Friday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Royalty Pharma from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Wall Street Zen raised Royalty Pharma from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $53.71.

Royalty Pharma Stock Down 0.8%

NASDAQ RPRX opened at $54.87 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $51.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.57. Royalty Pharma PLC has a one year low of $34.08 and a one year high of $56.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 2.66 and a current ratio of 2.66. The company has a market capitalization of $31.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.43.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.08. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 33.88% and a return on equity of 29.25%. The company had revenue of $630.58 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $881.69 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 5.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royalty Pharma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Royalty Pharma's payout ratio is 63.95%.

Royalty Pharma 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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