Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Royalty Pharma has a consensus “Buy” rating from seven analysts, with an average 12-month price target of about $53.71.
• The stock recently traded up 1.4% and opened at $55.63, near its 52-week high of $56.50, while maintaining a market cap of roughly $32.03 billion.
• In its latest quarterly results, Royalty Pharma beat EPS expectations at $1.30 per share, and the company also declared a $0.235 quarterly dividend for a 1.7% annualized yield.

Shares of Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $53.7143.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on RPRX shares. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Friday, February 27th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings lowered Royalty Pharma from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Royalty Pharma from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th.

Royalty Pharma Stock Up 1.4%

NASDAQ:RPRX opened at $55.63 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.03 billion, a PE ratio of 37.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $51.15 and a 200-day moving average of $45.28. Royalty Pharma has a 52 week low of $33.40 and a 52 week high of $56.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $881.69 million. Analysts predict that Royalty Pharma will post 5.05 EPS for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Royalty Pharma's dividend payout ratio is 63.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 64,399 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.98, for a total value of $3,476,258.02. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through 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 stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total value of $161,385.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 191,803 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,165,559. This trade represents a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 199,185 shares of company stock valued at $10,082,926 in the last three months. 18.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Royalty Pharma

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. LM Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Royalty Pharma during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new position in Royalty Pharma during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 868.1% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 881 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 790 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 52.9% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 832 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 173.4% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 689 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 437 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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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