Franco-Nevada (NYSE:FNV) Sees Strong Trading Volume Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Franco-Nevada Co. (NYSE:FNV) (TSE:FNV) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday after Raymond James raised their price target on the stock from $160.00 to $162.00. Raymond James currently has an outperform rating on the stock. 1,135,150 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 84% from the previous session’s volume of 616,913 shares.The stock last traded at $145.76 and had previously closed at $145.74.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. Scotiabank upped their target price on Franco-Nevada from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded Franco-Nevada from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Franco-Nevada from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. TD Securities cut Franco-Nevada from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $152.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Franco-Nevada from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Franco-Nevada presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $153.63.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franco-Nevada

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FNV. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Franco-Nevada in the third quarter worth about $1,850,000. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Franco-Nevada by 7.4% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,486 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Aubrey Capital Management Ltd raised its position in Franco-Nevada by 26.6% during the third quarter. Aubrey Capital Management Ltd now owns 9,253 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,942 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its position in Franco-Nevada by 22.7% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 15,153 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,882,000 after purchasing an additional 2,807 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in Franco-Nevada by 6.5% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 20,404 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,535,000 after purchasing an additional 1,237 shares during the period. 77.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franco-Nevada Stock Up 1.1 %

The stock has a market cap of $28.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.64, a PEG ratio of 9.78 and a beta of 0.73. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $134.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.60.

Franco-Nevada (NYSE:FNV) (TSE:FNV) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The basic materials company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.05. Franco-Nevada had a positive return on equity of 10.55% and a negative net margin of 55.28%. The firm had revenue of $321.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $304.33 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.90 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Franco-Nevada Co. will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franco-Nevada Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. This is a boost from Franco-Nevada’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Franco-Nevada’s dividend payout ratio is 53.15%.

Franco-Nevada Company Profile

Franco-Nevada Corporation operates as a gold-focused royalty and streaming company in South America, Central America, Mexico, the United States, Canada, and internationally. It operates through Mining and Energy segments. The company manages its portfolio with a focus on precious metals, such as gold, silver, and platinum group metals; and engages in the sale of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids through a third-party marketing agent.