Pacific Capital Partners Ltd Sells 77,500 Shares of Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX

Key Points

• Pacific Capital Partners Ltd reduced its stake in Royalty Pharma PLC by 44.3%, selling 77,500 shares, leaving it with 97,500 shares valued at approximately $3.5 million.
• Several other institutional investors, including Two Sigma Advisers LP and Victory Capital Management Inc., significantly increased their holdings in Royalty Pharma, with Victory Capital raising its stake by 270.4%.
• The average price target for Royalty Pharma shares has been adjusted to $48.00, with Citigroup and Morgan Stanley recommending a "buy" and "overweight" rating, respectively.

Pacific Capital Partners Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX - Free Report) by 44.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 97,500 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 77,500 shares during the quarter. Royalty Pharma accounts for approximately 3.3% of Pacific Capital Partners Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Pacific Capital Partners Ltd's holdings in Royalty Pharma were worth $3,513,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Louisbourg Investments Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in Royalty Pharma by 76.4% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 956 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in Royalty Pharma during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Royalty Pharma during the 1st quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma by 41.6% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,539 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on RPRX. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Royalty Pharma from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Royalty Pharma from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Royalty Pharma presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $48.00.

Royalty Pharma Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ RPRX traded up $0.77 during trading on Friday, reaching $36.50. The company had a trading volume of 1,104,724 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,372,380. The stock has a market cap of $21.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.58. The company's fifty day moving average price is $36.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 12 month low of $24.05 and a 12 month high of $38.00.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. Royalty Pharma had a return on equity of 25.54% and a net margin of 44.23%.The company had revenue of $578.67 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $750.06 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Royalty Pharma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.87%.

Royalty Pharma Company Profile

Royalty Pharma plc operates as a buyer of biopharmaceutical royalties and a funder of innovations in the biopharmaceutical industry in the United States. It is also involved in the identification, evaluation, and acquisition of royalties on various biopharmaceutical therapies. In addition, the company collaborates with innovators from academic institutions, research hospitals and not-for-profits, small and mid-cap biotechnology companies, and pharmaceutical companies.