Franco-Nevada (NYSE:FNV) Sees Large Volume Increase – Should You Buy?

Franco-Nevada Corporation (NYSE:FNV) (TSE:FNV) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 2,316,893 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 168% from the previous session’s volume of 865,599 shares.The stock last traded at $211.88 and had previously closed at $212.16.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on FNV shares. National Bank Financial raised shares of Franco-Nevada from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Franco-Nevada from $286.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. TD Securities raised shares of Franco-Nevada from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $291.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of Franco-Nevada in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Franco-Nevada from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $292.00 to $291.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franco-Nevada presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $271.00.

Franco-Nevada Stock Down 1.4%

The firm has a market cap of $40.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.45, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.34. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $239.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $235.79.

Franco-Nevada (NYSE:FNV) (TSE:FNV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The basic materials company reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $650.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $634.43 million. Franco-Nevada had a net margin of 65.12% and a return on equity of 18.10%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 76.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.07 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Franco-Nevada Corporation will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franco-Nevada Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. Franco-Nevada’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.79%.

Institutional Trading of Franco-Nevada

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Franco-Nevada by 112.3% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 121 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Franco-Nevada in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Franco-Nevada in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Private Trust Co. NA purchased a new position in Franco-Nevada in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new position in Franco-Nevada in the first quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.06% of the company’s stock.

About Franco-Nevada

Franco-Nevada Corporation is a Toronto-based royalty and streaming company that specializes in securing and managing long-term interests in mining properties. The firm focuses primarily on precious metals, particularly gold, while also holding interests related to silver, copper, platinum-group metals and select base metals. Rather than operating mines directly, Franco-Nevada acquires royalty and streaming agreements that entitle it to a percentage of production or revenue from producing and developing assets in exchange for upfront or staged financing.

The company’s business model centers on providing capital to mining companies in return for a sustained share of production or metal revenue, which can reduce exposure to operating and capital cost risks typical of mine operators.