M&G PLC Trims Position in Franco-Nevada Corporation $FNV

M&G PLC decreased its position in Franco-Nevada Corporation (NYSE:FNV) (TSE:FNV) by 25.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,034,226 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 353,291 shares during the quarter. Franco-Nevada makes up 1.2% of M&G PLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. M&G PLC owned 0.54% of Franco-Nevada worth $230,322,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Franco-Nevada by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,216,318 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,828,821,000 after purchasing an additional 129,898 shares during the last quarter. Arnhold LLC bought a new stake in Franco-Nevada during the third quarter valued at approximately $267,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in Franco-Nevada by 2.2% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,002 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in Franco-Nevada by 0.9% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 84,809 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $18,906,000 after acquiring an additional 727 shares during the period. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Franco-Nevada by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,772 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $617,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. 77.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on FNV. Canaccord Genuity Group cut Franco-Nevada from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $228.00 price objective on shares of Franco-Nevada in a research note on Sunday, December 7th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Franco-Nevada in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research cut shares of Franco-Nevada from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright lifted their price target on shares of Franco-Nevada from $210.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Franco-Nevada currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $254.38.

Franco-Nevada Trading Up 5.5%

NYSE FNV opened at $252.51 on Monday. Franco-Nevada Corporation has a 12 month low of $137.05 and a 12 month high of $273.55. The stock has a market cap of $48.68 billion, a PE ratio of 52.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.47. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $229.42 and its 200 day moving average is $207.34.

Franco-Nevada Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This is a positive change from Franco-Nevada’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 12th. Franco-Nevada’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.87%.

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.