ProShare Advisors LLC Sells 44,045 Shares of Royal Gold, Inc. $RGLD

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Royal Gold by 19.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 44,045 shares and leaving it with 181,355 shares valued at about $40.3 million.
• Royal Gold reported quarterly earnings of $1.92 per share, missing analyst estimates of $2.68, while revenue came in at $310.8 million versus expectations of $425.5 million.
• Despite recent weakness in the stock, analysts remain mixed but generally constructive: Royal Gold has a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $273.64, though some firms have recently downgraded the shares.

ProShare Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD - Free Report) TSE: RGL by 19.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 181,355 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 44,045 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.21% of Royal Gold worth $40,313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of RGLD. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Royal Gold in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH bought a new stake in Royal Gold in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Royal Gold in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Bank & Trust Co boosted its holdings in Royal Gold by 600.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 140 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Royal Gold in the third quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 83.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Royal Gold

In related news, SVP Randy Shefman sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.74, for a total transaction of $243,740.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 9,082 shares in the company, valued at $2,213,646.68. This represents a 9.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Daniel Breeze sold 1,400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.87, for a total transaction of $421,218.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 20,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,059,521.80. This trade represents a 6.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 8,573 shares of company stock worth $2,370,831 in the last three months. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Royal Gold Trading Down 3.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:RGLD opened at $218.93 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $18.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.09, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 3.52 and a quick ratio of 3.26. Royal Gold, Inc. has a 1 year low of $150.75 and a 1 year high of $306.25. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $249.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $241.48.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD - Get Free Report) TSE: RGL last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by ($0.76). The business had revenue of $310.83 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.47 million. Royal Gold had a net margin of 48.59% and a return on equity of 12.63%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 85.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 11.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Gold Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 2nd were given a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Royal Gold's dividend payout ratio is 22.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RGLD has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group set a $325.00 target price on Royal Gold and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Royal Gold from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $330.00 target price on shares of Royal Gold in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Royal Gold in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Scotiabank downgraded shares of 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. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $273.64.

Royal Gold Profile

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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