Franklin Resources Inc. Boosts Holdings in Royal Gold, Inc. $RGLD

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) by 53.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 28,242 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,888 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Royal Gold were worth $5,023,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of RGLD. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Royal Gold in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Royal Gold by 548.1% in the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 175 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Gold during the first quarter valued at $34,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Royal Gold by 56.8% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 196 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its stake in Royal Gold by 256.5% in the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 246 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. 83.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Gold Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:RGLD opened at $201.25 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $190.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $179.46. The company has a market cap of $16.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.51, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.39. Royal Gold, Inc. has a one year low of $130.67 and a one year high of $209.42.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.24). The firm had revenue of $250.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $275.11 million. Royal Gold had a return on equity of 13.30% and a net margin of 56.24%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 30.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.47 EPS. Analysts predict that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Gold Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be given a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This is a positive change from Royal Gold’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Royal Gold’s payout ratio is 26.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on RGLD shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Royal Gold from $193.00 to $203.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. BMO Capital Markets set a $240.00 price target on Royal Gold and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Raymond James Financial set a $264.00 price objective on Royal Gold in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Royal Gold in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, CIBC raised their price target on Royal Gold from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $225.40.

About Royal Gold

Royal Gold, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, acquires and manages precious metal streams, royalties, and related interests. The company engages in acquiring stream and royalty interests or to finance projects that are in production, development, or in the exploration stage in exchange for stream or royalty interests, which primarily consists of gold, silver, copper, nickel, zinc, lead, and other metals.