The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $7.48 Million Stake in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its position in shares of Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 53,282 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,145 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Royal Gold were worth $7,475,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 187.5% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 127,285 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $18,049,000 after buying an additional 83,015 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Royal Gold during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,201,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Royal Gold by 51.7% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 361 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of Royal Gold during the third quarter valued at approximately $11,246,000. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Royal Gold by 2.5% during the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 63,241 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,873,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Royal Gold

In related news, SVP Daniel Breeze sold 840 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.43, for a total transaction of $120,481.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,842 shares in the company, valued at $2,415,648.06. This trade represents a 4.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director William M. Hayes sold 1,984 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.05, for a total transaction of $291,747.20. Following the sale, the director now owns 9,268 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,362,859.40. The trade was a 17.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

Royal Gold Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ RGLD opened at $147.76 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $145.63 and its 200-day moving average is $137.54. The stock has a market cap of $9.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.89. Royal Gold, Inc. has a twelve month low of $100.55 and a twelve month high of $155.10.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $193.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $184.12 million. Royal Gold had a net margin of 42.93% and a return on equity of 10.18%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 39.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.76 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Gold Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. This is a boost from Royal Gold’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. Royal Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Royal Gold from $148.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Royal Gold from $141.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Royal Gold from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of Royal Gold from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, TD Securities raised their price objective on shares of Royal Gold from $181.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $165.43.

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.