Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Boosts Stake in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD - Free Report) TSE: RGL by 39.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,528 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,225 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Royal Gold were worth $2,443,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Royal Gold during the 4th quarter worth approximately $741,000. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Royal Gold by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 19,076 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,515,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 484,207 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $63,843,000 after purchasing an additional 5,067 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Royal Gold by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 13,005 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,715,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,215 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $424,000 after buying an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.65% of the company's stock.

Royal Gold Stock Down 4.3%

Shares of NASDAQ RGLD traded down $7.92 during trading on Friday, reaching $175.93. 682,089 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 423,685. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.58 billion, a PE ratio of 34.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.44. Royal Gold, Inc. has a 52-week low of $119.72 and a 52-week high of $191.78. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $176.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $155.81.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD - Get Free Report) TSE: RGL last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.14. Royal Gold had a return on equity of 11.46% and a net margin of 46.15%. The business had revenue of $193.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $176.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 29.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 6.2 EPS for the current year.

Royal Gold Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. Royal Gold's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. CIBC raised their price objective on Royal Gold from $202.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Royal Gold from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Royal Gold from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Scotiabank upgraded Royal Gold from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $166.00 to $189.00 in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $197.00 price target on shares of Royal Gold and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $183.13.

Insider Transactions at Royal Gold

In other Royal Gold news, SVP Randy Shefman sold 1,300 shares of Royal Gold stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.98, for a total transaction of $201,474.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 9,360 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,450,612.80. The trade was a 12.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

About Royal Gold

Royal Gold, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, acquires and manages precious metal streams, royalties, and related interests. The company engages in acquiring stream and royalty interests or to finance projects that are in production, development, or in the exploration stage in exchange for stream or royalty interests, which primarily consists of gold, silver, copper, nickel, zinc, lead, and other metals.