Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX Shares Bought by Aberdeen Group plc

Aberdeen Group plc raised its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) by 146.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 563,225 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 334,479 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc owned about 0.10% of Royalty Pharma worth $19,738,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of RPRX. Swedbank AB grew 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 acquiring an additional 42,800 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 678,810 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,176,504 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $299,494,000 after purchasing an additional 177,036 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $181,388,000. Finally, Patient Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Patient Capital Management LLC now owns 3,117,850 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $109,998,000 after purchasing an additional 129,862 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.35% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Royalty Pharma

In related news, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 114,954 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were 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 owned 23,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,026,960.48. This represents a 82.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP George W. Lloyd sold 110,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.77, for a total transaction of $4,374,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 110,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,374,700. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 1,034,602 shares of company stock worth $41,353,043 over the last 90 days. 18.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RPRX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Royalty Pharma from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley reiterated 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 raised Royalty Pharma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $49.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Leerink Partners set a $45.00 price objective on Royalty Pharma in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.67.

Royalty Pharma Price Performance

Shares of Royalty Pharma stock opened at $45.34 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.59 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.45. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 12 month low of $29.66 and a 12 month high of $46.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 2.40.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.46 EPS 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 analysts’ expectations of $839.97 million. Royalty Pharma had a return on equity of 28.21% and a net margin of 32.38%. As a group, analysts predict that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royalty Pharma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. This is an increase from Royalty Pharma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. Royalty Pharma’s payout ratio is 65.19%.

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.