Guggenheim Capital LLC Sells 8,498 Shares of Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD)

Guggenheim Capital LLC trimmed its stake in Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD - Free Report) TSE: RGL by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,739 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 8,498 shares during the quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings in Royal Gold were worth $3,526,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new position in Royal Gold in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Gold during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Royal Gold by 390.7% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 368 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in Royal Gold by 66.7% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 395 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Human Investing LLC bought a new position in Royal Gold during the 4th quarter valued at $73,000. 83.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Randy Shefman sold 1,300 shares of Royal Gold stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.98, for a total transaction of $201,474.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,360 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,450,612.80. The trade was a 12.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Royal Gold Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:RGLD traded down $0.59 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $185.33. 143,461 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 402,864. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $159.14 and a 200 day moving average of $148.37. The company has a market cap of $12.20 billion, a PE ratio of 36.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.77. Royal Gold, Inc. has a 52-week low of $118.00 and a 52-week high of $191.78.

Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD - Get Free Report) TSE: RGL last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The basic materials company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.17. Royal Gold had a net margin of 46.15% and a return on equity of 11.46%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Royal Gold, Inc. will post 6.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. Royal Gold's payout ratio is currently 35.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Royal Gold from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $154.00 to $178.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Royal Gold from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Raymond James upped their price objective on Royal Gold from $181.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Royal Gold from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $166.00 to $189.00 in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Royal Gold in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $196.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $178.00.

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.