Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Acquires 219,479 Shares of Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank increased its stake in Royalty Pharma by 222.1% in Q4, buying 219,479 shares to hold 318,293 shares worth about $12.3 million (roughly 0.06% of the company).
• Insiders have been net sellers, offloading 367,914 shares (~$16.07 million) in the past 90 days — including CFO Terrance Coyne's 114,954-share sale — leaving corporate insiders with 18.84% ownership.
• Royalty Pharma beat EPS estimates ($1.46 vs. $1.33) but missed revenue expectations ($622M vs. $840M), announced a $0.235 quarterly dividend (1.9% yield), and retains a consensus "Buy" rating with an average price target of $50.33 amid several price-target upgrades.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX - Free Report) by 222.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 318,293 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 219,479 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned 0.06% of Royalty Pharma worth $12,299,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of RPRX. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 27,212,694 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $960,064,000 after purchasing an additional 5,332,074 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royalty Pharma during the 3rd quarter worth $82,924,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 737.3% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 2,481,771 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $87,557,000 after purchasing an additional 2,185,366 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 379.2% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,235,133 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $78,855,000 after purchasing an additional 1,768,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clark Capital Management Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Royalty Pharma during the 3rd quarter worth $61,805,000. 54.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royalty Pharma

In other Royalty Pharma news, EVP Marshall Urist sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.09, for a total transaction of $821,800.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 114,954 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.84, for a total value of $4,924,629.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 23,972 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,026,960.48. This represents a 82.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 367,914 shares of company stock worth $16,074,774. Corporate insiders own 18.84% of the company's stock.

Royalty Pharma Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ RPRX opened at $49.64 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $41.89. The firm has a market cap of $28.64 billion, a PE ratio of 36.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.39. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 1 year low of $31.58 and a 1 year high of $50.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 2.40.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.13. Royalty Pharma had a return on equity of 28.21% and a net margin of 32.38%.The business had revenue of $621.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $839.97 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 5.08 EPS for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Royalty Pharma's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Royalty Pharma from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Friday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Royalty Pharma from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Royalty Pharma from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $50.33.

Royalty Pharma Company 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.

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