Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD - Get Free Report) TSE: RGL shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $191.22 and last traded at $186.45, with a volume of 1069272 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $185.00.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Royal Gold Stock Down 2.5 %

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $159.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $148.60. The company has a market capitalization of $11.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.77.

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

Royal Gold Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. Royal Gold's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.71%.

Insider Transactions at Royal Gold

In related news, SVP Randy Shefman sold 1,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.98, for a total value of $201,474.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,450,612.80. This represents a 12.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Royal Gold

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RGLD. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Royal Gold in the third quarter worth about $474,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Gold during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $591,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Royal Gold by 303.3% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 28,546 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,063,000 after buying an additional 21,468 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC grew its position in Royal Gold by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 4,909 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $647,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Gold by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,567 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $338,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.65% of the company's stock.

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.