Analysts Set Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) PT at $280.27

Shares of Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $280.2727.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Royal Gold from $318.00 to $311.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on Royal Gold from $310.00 to $305.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. National Bank Financial decreased their price target on Royal Gold from $350.00 to $340.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Royal Gold in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Royal Gold from $325.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th.

Royal Gold Trading Up 4.4%

Royal Gold stock opened at $215.09 on Monday. Royal Gold has a 52-week low of $160.08 and a 52-week high of $306.25. The company has a quick ratio of 3.26, a current ratio of 3.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.64, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $204.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $240.22.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $450.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $458.85 million. Royal Gold had a net margin of 48.59% and a return on equity of 12.63%. Royal Gold’s revenue was up 114.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Royal Gold will post 10.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Gold Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Royal Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.65%.

Insider Activity at Royal Gold

In other news, SVP Randy Shefman sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.85, for a total value of $107,925.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,852,424.70. This represents a 5.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Royal Gold

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Plancorp LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 69.8% during the 4th quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 13,732 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,053,000 after buying an additional 5,646 shares during the last quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management acquired a new position in Royal Gold in the fourth quarter worth approximately $7,916,000. World Investment Advisors bought a new position in Royal Gold during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,024,000. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in Royal Gold by 161.2% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 43,836 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,744,000 after acquiring an additional 27,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WJ Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Royal Gold during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,010,000. Institutional investors own 83.65% of the company’s stock.

About Royal Gold

Royal Gold, Inc, headquartered in Denver, Colorado, is a leading precious metals streaming and royalty company. Through its business model, Royal Gold provides upfront financing to mining operators in exchange for the right to purchase a percentage of future metal production at predetermined prices. This structure allows the company to participate in production upside while minimizing exposure to the operating and capital-intensive aspects of mine ownership.

The company’s portfolio encompasses interests in over 200 streams and royalties on projects across North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Australia.