SG Americas Securities LLC Increases Stock Position in Royal Gold, Inc. $RGLD

SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) by 52.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 17,671 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,109 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Royal Gold were worth $3,928,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of RGLD. Wedmont Private Capital bought a new position in shares of Royal Gold in the 4th quarter worth $275,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 329.0% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 948 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $211,000 after acquiring an additional 727 shares during the last quarter. Aventura Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Gold during the 4th quarter worth $54,000. Everhart Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Royal Gold by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,386 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $753,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC grew its position in Royal Gold by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 5,835 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,297,000 after acquiring an additional 890 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Royal Gold

In related news, Director Mark Isto sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.83, for a total transaction of $549,660.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,043 shares in the company, valued at $5,508,417.69. This trade represents a 9.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director William M. Hayes sold 4,173 shares of Royal Gold stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.07, for a total value of $1,156,213.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,129 shares in the company, valued at $1,698,162.03. This trade represents a 40.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 7,573 shares of company stock worth $2,127,091 in the last ninety days. 0.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Royal Gold Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:RGLD opened at $262.63 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.91, a current ratio of 3.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market cap of $22.27 billion, a PE ratio of 38.57, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s fifty day moving average is $269.14 and its 200 day moving average is $228.75. Royal Gold, Inc. has a 52 week low of $150.75 and a 52 week high of $306.25.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.68 by ($0.76). Royal Gold had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 11.89%. The business had revenue of $310.83 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $425.47 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 85.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Gold Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be paid a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. Royal Gold’s payout ratio is 27.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on RGLD. Scotiabank downgraded Royal Gold from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $335.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Royal Gold in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Royal Gold in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research cut Royal Gold from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of Royal Gold in a research report on Sunday, December 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Royal Gold has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $251.50.

About Royal Gold

Royal Gold, Inc, headquartered in Denver, Colorado, is a leading precious metals streaming and royalty company. Through its business model, Royal Gold provides upfront financing to mining operators in exchange for the right to purchase a percentage of future metal production at predetermined prices. This structure allows the company to participate in production upside while minimizing exposure to the operating and capital-intensive aspects of mine ownership.

The company’s portfolio encompasses interests in over 200 streams and royalties on projects across North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Australia.