Royalty Pharma PLC (RPRX) has announced its first dividend hike since the pharmaceutical company became publicly listed earlier this year as one of the biggest initial public offerings in the United States. The company initiated a $0.15 per share quarterly dividend in 2020 and will now hike its dividend by 13.3 percent to 17 cents per share quarterly. This increased dividend of $0.17 per share will be paid on March 15, 2021, to shareholders of record at the close of business on February 19, 2021. This results in a dividend yield of 1.3% based on a stock price of $51.27 and a new annual dividend rate of 68 cents per share. Royalty Pharma will pay an estimated annual dividend of $428 million to its shareholders if we include this latest dividend hike. Founded in 1996, Royalty Pharma is the largest buyer of biopharmaceutical royalties and a leading funder of innovation across the biopharmaceutical industry, collaborating with innovators from academic institutions, research hospitals and n...