California Public Employees Retirement System Sells 22,198 Shares of Royalty Pharma plc (NASDAQ:RPRX)

California Public Employees Retirement System decreased its position in shares of Royalty Pharma plc (NASDAQ:RPRX) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,781,024 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 22,198 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned about 0.30% of Royalty Pharma worth $45,434,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma by 1,006.9% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 963 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 876 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Royalty Pharma by 417.6% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,087 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 877 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Royalty Pharma by 3,953.3% during the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 1,216 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 1,186 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Royalty Pharma by 187.1% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,530 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 997 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Royalty Pharma by 160.5% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 1,628 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 1,003 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on RPRX. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Royalty Pharma to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Royalty Pharma in a research report on Friday, March 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.60.

Royalty Pharma Stock Performance

Shares of RPRX stock opened at $31.28 on Thursday. Royalty Pharma plc has a 12 month low of $24.05 and a 12 month high of $34.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.03 billion, a PE ratio of 21.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.47. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Royalty Pharma (NASDAQ:RPRX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.15 earnings per share 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%. Analysts forecast that Royalty Pharma plc will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royalty Pharma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 is a boost from Royalty Pharma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. Royalty Pharma’s payout ratio is presently 60.69%.

Royalty Pharma Profile

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.