Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Royalty Pharma plc (NASDAQ:RPRX)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $32.92 and last traded at $32.69, with a volume of 112537 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RPRX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Royalty Pharma from $60.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Royalty Pharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Royalty Pharma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $41.60.

Royalty Pharma Price Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average is $29.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.89. The firm has a market cap of $19.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.16. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 37.94% and a return on equity of 24.40%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Royalty Pharma plc will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This is an increase from Royalty Pharma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Royalty Pharma’s payout ratio is 57.93%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Royalty Pharma

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Royalty Pharma by 5.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,460,515 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,705,000 after purchasing an additional 70,130 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 171.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 101,500 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,777,000 after acquiring an additional 64,057 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments bought a new stake in shares of Royalty Pharma during the third quarter worth about $735,000. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royalty Pharma during the fourth quarter worth about $2,355,000. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 44.7% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 3,033,200 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $85,809,000 after acquiring an additional 936,900 shares in the last quarter. 54.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Royalty Pharma Company Profile

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.