Royal Gold, Inc. $RGLD Shares Acquired by Royce & Associates LP

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP boosted its stake in Royal Gold by 501.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 38,038 shares worth about $8.46 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other investors holding 83.65% of Royal Gold’s stock. Several firms increased positions, though some insiders also sold shares recently.
• Royal Gold has mixed analyst sentiment: the stock carries a Moderate Buy consensus with a $273.64 average price target, and the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.475 per share payable July 16.

Royce & Associates LP increased its position in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD - Free Report) TSE: RGL by 501.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 38,038 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 31,718 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP's holdings in Royal Gold were worth $8,455,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,049 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $233,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 74.1% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 6,423 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,428,000 after acquiring an additional 2,734 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC grew its holdings in Royal Gold by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 3,792 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $843,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Gold during the 4th quarter valued at $322,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Royal Gold by 106.2% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 400 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on RGLD. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $330.00 price target on shares of Royal Gold in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Royal Gold in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. National Bank Financial reduced their price target on Royal Gold from $350.00 to $340.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Zacks Research lowered Royal Gold from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, UBS Group set a $325.00 price target on Royal Gold and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $273.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Royal Gold news, SVP Daniel Breeze sold 1,400 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 20,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,059,521.80. This trade represents a 6.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark Isto sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.83, for a total value of $549,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 20,043 shares in the company, valued at $5,508,417.69. This trade represents a 9.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 4,400 shares of company stock worth $1,214,618 over the last three months. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Royal Gold Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:RGLD opened at $222.68 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.90 billion, a PE ratio of 26.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 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. The business has a 50-day moving average of $242.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $243.86. Royal Gold, Inc. has a 12 month low of $150.75 and a 12 month high of $306.25.

Royal Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Royal Gold's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.65%.

Royal Gold Company 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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