Crawford Fund Management LLC Has $6.64 Million Stock Holdings in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD)

Crawford Fund Management LLC grew its holdings in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD - Free Report) TSE: RGL by 9.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 47,327 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 4,200 shares during the period. Royal Gold accounts for about 1.4% of Crawford Fund Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Crawford Fund Management LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Royal Gold worth $6,640,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Royal Gold during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new position in Royal Gold during the 3rd quarter worth $49,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Royal Gold by 51.7% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 361 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Royal Gold by 108.7% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 409 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in Royal Gold during the 2nd quarter worth $62,000. 83.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Gold Stock Up 0.4 %

RGLD traded up $0.59 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $146.26. 163,276 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 372,705. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.90. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $145.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.99. Royal Gold, Inc. has a 1-year low of $100.55 and a 1-year high of $155.10.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD - Get Free Report) TSE: RGL last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $193.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $184.12 million. Royal Gold had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 42.93%. The firm's revenue was up 39.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.76 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Gold Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. This is an increase from Royal Gold's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. Royal Gold's payout ratio is currently 36.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on RGLD shares. StockNews.com upgraded Royal Gold from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Royal Gold from $148.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Raymond James boosted 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. TD Securities boosted their price objective on Royal Gold from $181.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Royal Gold from $141.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $165.43.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William M. Hayes sold 1,984 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 9,268 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Daniel Breeze sold 840 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.43, for a total value of $120,481.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,415,648.06. This trade represents a 4.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.52% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.