Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $1.39 EPS

Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The company reported ($0.83) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($1.39), Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $432.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $429.66 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.59) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Madison Square Garden Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MSGS traded down $3.79 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $328.73. 324,907 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 240,973. Madison Square Garden has a twelve month low of $186.00 and a twelve month high of $345.50. The firm has a market cap of $7.91 billion, a P/E ratio of -476.42 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $323.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $277.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Madison Square Garden news, Director Charles P. Dolan sold 5,659 shares of Madison Square Garden stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.26, for a total transaction of $1,840,646.34. Following the sale, the director owned 435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $141,488.10. The trade was a 92.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 19.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of MSGS. Panagora Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Madison Square Garden during the 4th quarter worth about $214,000. Fayez Sarofim & Co bought a new position in shares of Madison Square Garden in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in shares of Madison Square Garden in the second quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Commerce Bank acquired a new position in shares of Madison Square Garden during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Finally, United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in shares of Madison Square Garden during the first quarter valued at approximately $210,000. 68.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lowered shares of Madison Square Garden from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $337.00 to $355.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Madison Square Garden from $240.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Madison Square Garden from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Seaport Research Partners upgraded shares of Madison Square Garden from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $430.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Madison Square Garden from $355.00 to $401.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $333.80.

Madison Square Garden Company Profile

Madison Square Garden Sports Corp (NYSE: MSGS) is a leading sports and entertainment holding company focused on professional sports franchises and related media assets. The company owns and operates teams such as the NBA’s New York Knicks, the NHL’s New York Rangers and the WNBA’s New York Liberty. Through these flagship franchises, MSG Sports offers a range of products and services including ticketing, premium seating and sponsorship opportunities, targeting fans in the New York metropolitan area and beyond.

In addition to team operations, Madison Square Garden Sports Corp holds a majority stake in MSG Networks, a regional cable network that broadcasts live sporting events, news and original programming.