Pacer Advisors Inc. Sells 224,855 Shares of Royalty Pharma PLC $RPRX

Pacer Advisors Inc. lessened its position in shares of Royalty Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:RPRX) by 24.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 689,194 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 224,855 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Royalty Pharma were worth $33,061,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LM Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Royalty Pharma in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Royalty Pharma in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Private Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 52.9% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 832 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Royalty Pharma by 173.4% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 689 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 437 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in Royalty Pharma by 66.4% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,118 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 446 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 54.35% of the company’s stock.

Royalty Pharma Stock Performance

NASDAQ RPRX opened at $57.17 on Tuesday. Royalty Pharma PLC has a 1-year low of $34.08 and a 1-year high of $60.44. The company has a market cap of $32.92 billion, a PE ratio of 38.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.43. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 2.66 and a quick ratio of 2.66.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.08. Royalty Pharma had a net margin of 33.88% and a return on equity of 29.25%. The firm had revenue of $630.58 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $881.69 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Royalty Pharma PLC will post 5.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royalty Pharma Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Royalty Pharma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Christopher Hite sold 150,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.40, for a total value of $8,160,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 559,399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,431,305.60. The trade was a 21.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Terrance P. Coyne sold 64,399 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.98, for a total transaction of $3,476,258.02. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 393,009 shares of company stock valued at $21,601,827. 18.84% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Royalty Pharma from $50.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Royalty Pharma from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Royalty Pharma from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Royalty Pharma from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.57.

Royalty Pharma Profile

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.