Korea Investment CORP Grows Stock Position in Royalty Pharma plc (NASDAQ:RPRX)

Korea Investment CORP grew its position in shares of Royalty Pharma plc (NASDAQ:RPRX) by 43.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 224,272 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 68,300 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Royalty Pharma were worth $5,721,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB increased its stake in Royalty Pharma by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 12,164,170 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $310,308,000 after buying an additional 1,136,800 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 44.7% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 3,033,200 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $85,809,000 after acquiring an additional 936,900 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma in the fourth quarter worth about $19,990,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Royalty Pharma in the third quarter valued at about $14,898,000. Finally, New South Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Royalty Pharma by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. New South Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,957,125 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $75,436,000 after purchasing an additional 490,754 shares in the last quarter. 54.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royalty Pharma Price Performance

Shares of RPRX opened at $31.13 on Tuesday. Royalty Pharma plc has a 52 week low of $24.05 and a 52 week high of $34.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market cap of $17.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.47, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $32.45 and a 200-day moving average of $28.88.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.16. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 37.94% and a return on equity of 24.40%. As a group, analysts forecast that Royalty Pharma plc will post 4.49 EPS for the current year.

Royalty Pharma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Royalty Pharma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Royalty Pharma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on RPRX. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen raised shares of Royalty Pharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Royalty Pharma presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $41.60.

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.