Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) Shares Down 8.1% – Here’s Why

Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) shares were down 8.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $222.14 and last traded at $222.94. Approximately 910,583 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 7% from the average daily volume of 974,604 shares. The stock had previously closed at $242.52.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RGLD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Royal Gold in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research cut Royal Gold from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $330.00 price target on shares of Royal Gold in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Royal Gold in a research report on Sunday, December 7th. Finally, Scotiabank downgraded shares of Royal Gold from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $335.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, January 26th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Gold currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $251.50.

Royal Gold Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $274.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $224.98. The company has a current ratio of 3.12, a quick ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market cap of $18.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.59, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.48.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by ($0.76). The firm had revenue of $360.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.47 million. Royal Gold had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 11.89%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 85.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Gold Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be paid a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Royal Gold’s payout ratio is presently 27.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Gold

In other news, SVP Daniel Breeze sold 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.87, for a total value of $421,218.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 20,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,059,521.80. This represents a 6.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director William M. Hayes sold 4,173 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.07, for a total value of $1,156,213.11. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,698,162.03. This trade represents a 40.51% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,573 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,091. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Gold

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in Royal Gold by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,993 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $888,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors bought a new position in Royal Gold in the 4th quarter valued at $1,103,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Royal Gold by 141.4% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,736 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,497,000 after purchasing an additional 3,946 shares in the last quarter. Flax Pond Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Gold in the fourth quarter valued at $3,832,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 35.0% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 9,548 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,129,000 after buying an additional 2,477 shares during the last quarter. 83.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Royal Gold Company Profile

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.