iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) Given Consensus Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) have received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the five research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $4.3333.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on IHRT. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of iHeartMedia from $3.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of iHeartMedia in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of iHeartMedia from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $4.00 to $3.50 in a research report on Friday, January 9th.

Insider Activity at iHeartMedia

In related news, CEO Robert W. Pittman acquired 32,468 shares of iHeartMedia stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $3.25 per share, for a total transaction of $105,521.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,214,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,198,545.25. This trade represents a 0.53% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 8.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On iHeartMedia

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Global Media & Entertainment Investments Ltd bought a new stake in iHeartMedia during the third quarter valued at about $52,061,800,000. Sona Asset Management US LLC grew its stake in shares of iHeartMedia by 2,693.8% during the 4th quarter. Sona Asset Management US LLC now owns 1,623,571 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,754,000 after acquiring an additional 1,565,457 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of iHeartMedia by 99.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,214,301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,654,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105,976 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in iHeartMedia in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,204,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in iHeartMedia by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,713,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,929,000 after acquiring an additional 741,736 shares in the last quarter. 93.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

iHeartMedia Price Performance

Shares of IHRT opened at $3.24 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $486.52 million, a P/E ratio of -1.06, a PEG ratio of 30.97 and a beta of 1.70. iHeartMedia has a one year low of $0.95 and a one year high of $5.44. The business has a fifty day moving average of $3.57 and a 200 day moving average of $3.41.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.10 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. iHeartMedia had a negative return on equity of 1.63% and a negative net margin of 12.24%. Analysts expect that iHeartMedia will post -0.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

iHeartMedia Company Profile

iHeartMedia, Inc (NASDAQ: IHRT) is a leading media and entertainment company specializing in radio broadcasting, digital streaming and live events. The company operates more than 860 full-power AM and FM radio stations across the United States, delivering music, news, sports and talk programming to local markets. Through its flagship digital platform, iHeartRadio, the company provides listeners with free and subscription-based access to thousands of live radio stations, curated music playlists and on-demand podcasts.

Originally founded in 1972 as Clear Channel Communications, the business rebranded to iHeartMedia in 2014 to reflect the growing importance of its digital and event-driven offerings.