George Lloyd Sells 79,346 Shares of Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) Stock

Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) EVP George Lloyd sold 79,346 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.57, for a total value of $3,060,375.22. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,654 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,182,324.78. The trade was a 72.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Royalty Pharma Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ RPRX opened at $38.60 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $22.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.47. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 12 month low of $24.32 and a 12 month high of $41.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 3.48 and a quick ratio of 3.48. The company has a 50-day moving average of $38.36 and a 200-day moving average of $36.76.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.06. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 32.51% and a return on equity of 26.36%. The firm had revenue of $609.29 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $765.01 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. Royalty Pharma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Royalty Pharma

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 868.1% in the 3rd 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. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma during the second quarter worth $32,000. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma in the third quarter valued at $35,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma in the first quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 31.9% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,264 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. 54.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Royalty Pharma from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 10th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Royalty Pharma from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Leerink Partners set a $45.00 target price on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $42.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Royalty Pharma from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.60.

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.