Gabelli Funds LLC Lowers Stock Position in Royal Gold, Inc. $RGLD

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC trimmed its stake in Royal Gold by 5.8%, selling 12,885 shares and leaving 207,915 shares worth about $41.7 million, while overall institutional ownership stands at roughly 83.65%.
• Royal Gold missed quarterly expectations with EPS $1.92 vs. $2.68 expected and revenue of $360.9M versus $425.5M expected, though revenue rose 85.2% year-over-year.
• Company insiders sold shares (SVP Daniel Breeze sold 1,400 shares; Director William Hayes sold 4,173 shares) and Royal Gold declared a quarterly dividend of $0.475 per share (annualized $1.90, yield ~0.7%, ex-dividend April 2).

Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its position in shares of Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD - Free Report) TSE: RGL by 5.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 207,915 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 12,885 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC owned 0.32% of Royal Gold worth $41,704,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Royal Gold by 99.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 168,846 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $27,608,000 after buying an additional 84,206 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in shares of Royal Gold by 51.5% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 8,465 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,384,000 after buying an additional 2,876 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 51.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,791 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,053,000 after acquiring an additional 7,716 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc grew its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 29.2% in the second quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 1,792 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $319,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Gold during the second quarter valued at approximately $725,000. 83.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Daniel Breeze sold 1,400 shares of Royal Gold stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.87, for a total value of $421,218.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 20,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,059,521.80. This trade represents a 6.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director William M. Hayes sold 4,173 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.07, for a total value of $1,156,213.11. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,129 shares in the company, valued at $1,698,162.03. This represents a 40.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Royal Gold Trading Up 1.2%

NASDAQ:RGLD opened at $279.84 on Friday. Royal Gold, Inc. has a 12 month low of $149.66 and a 12 month high of $306.25. The company has a current ratio of 3.12, a quick ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm's 50 day moving average is $268.78 and its 200 day moving average is $219.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.73 billion, a PE ratio of 41.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.48.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD - Get Free Report) TSE: RGL last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.68 by ($0.76). The firm had revenue of $360.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.47 million. Royal Gold had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 11.89%. Royal Gold's revenue for the quarter was up 85.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.63 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Royal Gold's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Royal Gold from $261.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Zacks Research downgraded Royal Gold from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Royal Gold in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Scotiabank cut Royal Gold from a "sector outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $335.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Royal Gold in a report on Sunday, December 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Gold presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $251.50.

About Royal Gold

Royal Gold, Inc, headquartered in Denver, Colorado, is a leading precious metals streaming and royalty company. Through its business model, Royal Gold provides upfront financing to mining operators in exchange for the right to purchase a percentage of future metal production at predetermined prices. This structure allows the company to participate in production upside while minimizing exposure to the operating and capital-intensive aspects of mine ownership.

The company's portfolio encompasses interests in over 200 streams and royalties on projects across North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Australia.

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