Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) Hits New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• 52-week high: Royalty Pharma shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $49.12 and last at $49.19, and Wall Street holds a consensus "Buy" (six Buy ratings) with a consensus price target of $49.00; Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $63 and an "overweight" rating.
• Mixed quarterly results: Royalty Pharma reported EPS of $1.46 (beating estimates by $0.13) while revenue of $622.0M missed expectations (~$840M); the stock trades at a market cap of $28.8B with a P/E of 37.0 and PEG of 3.11.
• Insider activity: Insiders sold 457,496 shares worth $19.6M in the last quarter (including CFO Terrance Coyne selling 114,954 shares), though insiders still own 18.9% and institutional investors hold 54.35% of the stock.

Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $49.12 and last traded at $49.1940, with a volume of 657517 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $48.48.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RPRX has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Royalty Pharma from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen cut Royalty Pharma from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Royalty Pharma from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.00.

Royalty Pharma Stock Up 3.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 2.40. The company has a market cap of $28.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.04, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $46.35 and a 200 day moving average of $41.41.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $621.99 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $839.97 million. Research analysts anticipate that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Royalty Pharma

In other Royalty Pharma news, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 114,954 shares of Royalty Pharma stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 23,972 shares in the company, valued at $1,026,960.48. The trade was a 82.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Marshall Urist sold 20,000 shares of Royalty Pharma stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.09, for a total value of $821,800.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 457,496 shares of company stock worth $19,618,025. Company insiders own 18.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. LM Advisors LLC bought a new position in Royalty Pharma in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new position in Royalty Pharma in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Royalty Pharma by 868.1% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 881 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 790 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in Royalty Pharma by 52.9% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 832 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new position in Royalty Pharma in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors own 54.35% of the company's stock.

About Royalty Pharma

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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