iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) Trading 5.6% Higher – Still a Buy?

iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT)’s share price shot up 5.6% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $4.23 and last traded at $4.34. 26,256 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 97% from the average session volume of 1,002,961 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of iHeartMedia in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, iHeartMedia presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $4.25.

iHeartMedia Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $659.77 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.37 and a beta of 2.21. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $4.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3.90.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.61) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $884.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $871.50 million. iHeartMedia had a negative net margin of 7.28% and a negative return on equity of 1.63%. On average, equities research analysts expect that iHeartMedia, Inc. will post -0.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On iHeartMedia

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of iHeartMedia by 67.7% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 3,378 shares in the last quarter. Xponance LLC bought a new stake in iHeartMedia during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in iHeartMedia during the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of iHeartMedia in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in shares of iHeartMedia in the fourth quarter valued at $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.89% of the company’s stock.

About iHeartMedia

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.