Heartland Advisors Inc. Purchases New Shares in Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX

Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 96,553 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,406,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in RPRX. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 0.4% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 12,200,270 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $430,426,000 after purchasing an additional 42,800 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,194,938 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $367,324,000 after buying an additional 678,810 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 2.2% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,176,504 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $299,494,000 after acquiring an additional 177,036 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma in the second quarter valued at approximately $181,388,000. Finally, Patient Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 4.3% during the third quarter. Patient Capital Management LLC now owns 3,117,850 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $109,998,000 after acquiring an additional 129,862 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.35% of the company’s stock.

Royalty Pharma Price Performance

NASDAQ RPRX opened at $45.41 on Wednesday. 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 cap of $26.21 billion, a PE ratio of 33.64 and a beta of 0.42. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 52 week low of $29.66 and a 52 week high of $46.14. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.40.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $621.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $839.97 million. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 32.38% and a return on equity of 28.21%. Research analysts predict 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 Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be issued a $0.235 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. This is an increase from Royalty Pharma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Royalty Pharma’s dividend payout ratio is 65.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royalty Pharma

In other news, EVP George W. Lloyd sold 110,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.77, for a total transaction of $4,374,700.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 110,000 shares in the company, valued at $4,374,700. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 114,954 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.84, for a total transaction of $4,924,629.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 23,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,026,960.48. The trade was a 82.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,034,602 shares of company stock valued at $41,353,043. 18.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $61.00 price target on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Royalty Pharma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $49.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Royalty Pharma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $48.67.

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.