Royal Bank of Canada Purchases 23,479 Shares of Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada increased its Royalty Pharma stake by 15% in the first quarter, acquiring 23,479 shares and bringing its holdings to 179,902 shares valued at approximately $8.63 million.
• Institutional ownership remains significant at 54.35% of RPRX shares, while several other investment firms also added to their positions.
• Royalty Pharma reported quarterly EPS of $1.32, exceeding estimates of $1.27, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.235 per share. Analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with an average price target of $60.86.

Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX - Free Report) by 15.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 179,902 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 23,479 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada's holdings in Royalty Pharma were worth $8,628,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in RPRX. Barton Investment Management purchased a new stake in shares of Royalty Pharma during the first quarter valued at $905,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position 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 buying an additional 24,048 shares during the last quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new position in Royalty Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,875,000. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new position in Royalty Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at about $4,923,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Royalty Pharma by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 233,320 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $9,016,000 after acquiring an additional 22,015 shares during the period. 54.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royalty Pharma Price Performance

NASDAQ RPRX opened at $56.77 on Monday. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 52 week low of $34.08 and a 52 week high of $60.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.15, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 2.80, a current ratio of 2.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $56.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $50.54.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $674.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $758.93 million. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 32.14% and a return on equity of 30.01%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 5.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Royalty Pharma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.83%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on RPRX shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Royalty Pharma from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Royalty Pharma from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Thursday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Royalty Pharma presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royalty Pharma

In related news, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 64,399 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.98, for a total value of $3,476,258.02. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Marshall Urist sold 9,099 shares of Royalty Pharma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.88, for a total value of $508,452.12. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 393,009 shares of company stock worth $21,601,827. 18.84% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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