MML Investors Services LLC Decreases Position in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD)

MML Investors Services LLC trimmed its position in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) (TSE:RGL) by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,173 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 284 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Royal Gold were worth $586,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of RGLD. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Gold in the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Royal Gold during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA acquired a new stake in Royal Gold during the 3rd quarter worth $49,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Gold by 51.7% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 361 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Royal Gold by 108.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 409 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. 83.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RGLD. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Royal Gold from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. TD Securities increased their price target on Royal Gold from $181.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Raymond James lifted their price objective on Royal Gold from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Royal Gold from $141.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. 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. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $165.43.

Insider Transactions at Royal Gold

In other Royal Gold news, Director William M. Hayes sold 1,984 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.05, for a total transaction of $291,747.20. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,268 shares in the company, valued at $1,362,859.40. This represents a 17.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Daniel Breeze sold 549 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $82,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 16,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,443,950. This trade represents a 3.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

Royal Gold Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:RGLD opened at $133.81 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.69, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.89. Royal Gold, Inc. has a 12-month low of $100.55 and a 12-month high of $155.10. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $146.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $138.85.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.13. Royal Gold had a net margin of 42.93% and a return on equity of 10.18%. The business had revenue of $193.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $184.12 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.76 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 39.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 5.14 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.35%. 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 is 41.28%.

Royal Gold Profile

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.