Baillie Gifford & Co. Trims Position in Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX

Baillie Gifford & Co. trimmed its stake in Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,372,502 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 647,953 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. owned about 2.98% of Royalty Pharma worth $612,902,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in shares of Royalty Pharma in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new stake in Royalty Pharma during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 113.8% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 760 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma during the 3rd quarter worth $54,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 19.2% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,137 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. 54.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Royalty Pharma from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Royalty Pharma from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Leerink Partners set a $45.00 target price on Royalty Pharma in a report on Thursday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Royalty Pharma in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.60.

Insider Activity at Royalty Pharma

In related news, EVP George W. Lloyd sold 132,426 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.34, for a total value of $5,077,212.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 69,594 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.30, for a total value of $2,735,044.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 54,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,152,068. The trade was a 55.96% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 1,025,675 shares of company stock valued at $40,028,396 over the last ninety days. 18.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Royalty Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of RPRX opened at $40.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.48, a quick ratio of 3.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $23.32 billion, a PE ratio of 30.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.43. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 12 month low of $29.66 and a 12 month high of $41.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $39.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $37.55.

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

Royalty Pharma Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is an increase from Royalty Pharma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 20th. Royalty Pharma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.67%.

Royalty Pharma 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.