Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Royalty Pharma has been downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating.
• Analysts have varying ratings for Royalty Pharma, with a consensus rating of "Buy" and a price target of $48.00.
• The company's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $1.14, exceeding analysts' expectations, despite revenues falling short of estimates.

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

RPRX has been the topic of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Royalty Pharma from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Royalty Pharma has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $48.00.

Royalty Pharma Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:RPRX traded up $0.09 on Friday, reaching $35.73. 9,157,677 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,237,795. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Royalty Pharma has a 1-year low of $24.05 and a 1-year high of $38.00. The firm has a market cap of $20.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a 50-day moving average of $36.34 and a 200-day moving average of $34.34.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 44.23% and a return on equity of 25.54%. The business had revenue of $578.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $750.06 million. Equities analysts forecast that Royalty Pharma will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royalty Pharma Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Royalty Pharma's dividend payout ratio is 50.87%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RPRX. Louisbourg Investments Inc. purchased a new position in Royalty Pharma in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 76.4% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 956 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma during the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma during the 1st quarter worth about $39,000. 54.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Royalty Pharma

Royalty Pharma plc operates as a buyer of biopharmaceutical royalties and a funder of innovations in the biopharmaceutical industry in the United States. It is also involved in the identification, evaluation, and acquisition of royalties on various biopharmaceutical therapies. In addition, the company collaborates with innovators from academic institutions, research hospitals and not-for-profits, small and mid-cap biotechnology companies, and pharmaceutical companies.