Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) Sets New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Royalty Pharma shares hit a new 52-week high of $59.31, reflecting strong recent momentum in the stock.
• Several analysts turned more bullish on the company, including price-target increases from Morgan Stanley, UBS, Citigroup, and TD Cowen; the stock currently has a consensus Buy rating.
• The company recently beat quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $1.30 per share versus the $1.22 estimate, even though revenue came in below forecasts.

Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $59.31 and last traded at $59.3330, with a volume of 347128 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $58.53.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Royalty Pharma from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Citigroup upped their target price on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Royalty Pharma from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $56.57.

Royalty Pharma Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $54.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.46. The stock has a market cap of $34.02 billion, a PE ratio of 40.17, a P/E/G ratio of 9.97 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 2.66 and a quick ratio of 2.66.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.08. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 33.88% and a return on equity of 29.25%. The firm had revenue of $630.58 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $881.69 million. Equities analysts predict that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Marshall Urist sold 9,099 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.88, for a total value of $508,452.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Gregory Norden sold 3,045 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total value of $161,385.00. Following the sale, the director owned 191,803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,165,559. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 427,800 shares of company stock worth $23,333,723 over the last three months. 18.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. LM Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Royalty Pharma during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Royalty Pharma during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma by 52.9% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 832 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 173.4% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 689 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 437 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in Royalty Pharma by 66.4% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,118 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.35% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.