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

Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $49.12 and last traded at $49.1940, with a volume of 657517 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.48.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on RPRX. Weiss Ratings upgraded Royalty Pharma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Royalty Pharma from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Wall Street Zen cut Royalty Pharma from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Royalty Pharma from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $49.00.

Royalty Pharma Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $46.35 and a 200 day moving average of $41.41. The company has a quick ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $28.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.39.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $621.99 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $839.97 million. Royalty Pharma had a return on equity of 28.21% and a net margin of 32.38%. As a group, analysts predict that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 4.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Marshall Urist sold 20,000 shares of Royalty Pharma stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.09, for a total value of $821,800.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 114,954 shares of Royalty Pharma stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 23,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,026,960.48. This represents a 82.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 457,496 shares of company stock worth $19,618,025. 18.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royalty Pharma

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. acquired a new position in Royalty Pharma in the third quarter valued at approximately $933,000. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in Royalty Pharma by 18.3% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 775,999 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,137,000 after buying an additional 120,004 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors acquired a new position in Royalty Pharma in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,702,000. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR lifted its stake in Royalty Pharma by 7,752.8% in the third quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR now owns 34,081 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,202,000 after buying an additional 33,647 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Royalty Pharma by 28.5% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 140,131 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,944,000 after buying an additional 31,045 shares during the period. 54.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.