Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $59.31 and last traded at $59.3330, with a volume of 347128 shares. The stock had previously closed at $58.53.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RPRX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. TD Cowen increased their target price on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Royalty Pharma from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley upped 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. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Royalty Pharma presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $56.57.

Royalty Pharma Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $33.50 billion, a PE ratio of 39.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.30 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $55.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.52.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $630.58 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $881.69 million. Royalty Pharma had a return on equity of 29.25% and a net margin of 33.88%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 5.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Royalty Pharma

In related news, EVP Marshall Urist sold 9,099 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.88, for a total value of $508,452.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Christopher Hite sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.52, for a total transaction of $5,652,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 459,399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,965,231.48. The trade was a 17.88% 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 a total of 427,800 shares of company stock worth $23,333,723 over the last ninety days. 18.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royalty Pharma

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Barton Investment Management purchased a new stake in shares of Royalty Pharma in the first quarter valued at $905,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Royalty Pharma by 16.2% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 172,418 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,662,000 after purchasing an additional 24,048 shares in the last quarter. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new position in Royalty Pharma in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,923,000. Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Royalty Pharma in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,875,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Royalty Pharma by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 812,663 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,604,000 after purchasing an additional 36,664 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.35% of the company’s stock.

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.