Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) Shares Gap Up Following Dividend Announcement

Royalty Pharma plc (NASDAQ:RPRX) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced a dividend. The stock had previously closed at $26.20, but opened at $27.55. Royalty Pharma shares last traded at $27.91, with a volume of 539,187 shares trading hands.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a boost from Royalty Pharma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Royalty Pharma’s payout ratio is presently 43.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on RPRX. StockNews.com raised shares of Royalty Pharma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. TD Cowen raised shares of Royalty Pharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Royalty Pharma from $60.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $41.67.

Royalty Pharma Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $25.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.54. The company has a market capitalization of $17.38 billion, a PE ratio of 15.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.47.

Institutional Trading of Royalty Pharma

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 362.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,203 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 943 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Royalty Pharma in the third quarter valued at approximately $61,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,471 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 32.1% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,698 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 655 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 99.9% in the third quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 3,459 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 1,729 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.35% of the company’s stock.

About Royalty Pharma

Royalty Pharma plc operates as a buyer of biopharmaceutical royalties and a funder of innovations in the biopharmaceutical industry in the United States. It is also involved in the identification, evaluation, and acquisition of royalties on various biopharmaceutical therapies. In addition, the company collaborates with innovators from academic institutions, research hospitals and not-for-profits, small and mid-cap biotechnology companies, and pharmaceutical companies.