Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) Downgraded to Buy Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen upped their target price on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Royalty Pharma from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup increased their price objective on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Thursday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.86.

Royalty Pharma Trading Down 0.9%

NASDAQ:RPRX opened at $56.77 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $56.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $50.47. Royalty Pharma has a 12 month low of $34.08 and a 12 month high of $60.44. The company has a current ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $32.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.43.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.05. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 32.14% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The company had revenue of $674.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $758.93 million. Equities analysts predict that Royalty Pharma will post 5.26 EPS for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Royalty Pharma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Christopher Hite sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.52, for a total transaction of $5,652,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 459,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,965,231.48. This trade represents a 17.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 64,399 shares of Royalty Pharma stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.98, for a total value of $3,476,258.02. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 393,009 shares of company stock valued at $21,601,827. 18.84% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royalty Pharma

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RPRX. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Royalty Pharma by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 55,274,069 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,135,790,000 after purchasing an additional 11,110,115 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 31,104,309 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,201,870,000 after buying an additional 3,891,615 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,649,641 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $411,502,000 after buying an additional 376,888 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,719,843 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $297,465,000 after buying an additional 102,430 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,106,905 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $197,331,000 after acquiring an additional 449,498 shares in the last quarter. 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.