Short Interest in Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) Declines By 49.2%

Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 13,443,797 shares, a drop of 49.2% from the January 29th total of 26,462,455 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 4,434,841 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 2.9% of the shares of the company are sold short. Approximately 2.9% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 4,434,841 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on RPRX shares. Leerink Partners set a $45.00 target price on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Royalty Pharma from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Royalty Pharma from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Royalty Pharma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $48.67.

Royalty Pharma Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of RPRX stock opened at $45.36 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.77. Royalty Pharma has a 52 week low of $29.66 and a 52 week high of $46.14. The stock has a market cap of $26.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.60 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

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

Royalty Pharma Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 20th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Royalty Pharma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Royalty Pharma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.63%.

Insider Transactions at Royalty Pharma

In other news, EVP Marshall Urist sold 23,334 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.15, for a total value of $913,526.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 160,000 shares in the company, valued at $6,264,000. This represents a 12.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 114,954 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 965,020 shares of company stock worth $38,670,657 in the last 90 days. 18.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Royalty Pharma

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Compound Planning Inc. lifted its position in Royalty Pharma by 21.7% during the fourth quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 10,618 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,896 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 154,922 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,986,000 after buying an additional 32,766 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 17,177 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $664,000 after acquiring an additional 3,452 shares during the last quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. purchased a new position in Royalty Pharma in the fourth quarter worth about $1,321,000. Finally, Delta Global Management LP bought a new stake in Royalty Pharma during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,712,000. Institutional investors own 54.35% of the company’s stock.

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.