iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) have earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the six analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $7.42.

Separately, Barrington Research reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of iHeartMedia in a report on Wednesday, August 9th.

iHeartMedia Stock Performance

NASDAQ:IHRT opened at $3.40 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $3.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.43. iHeartMedia has a twelve month low of $2.21 and a twelve month high of $10.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $491.36 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.38 and a beta of 1.90.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 8th. The company reported ($5.93) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by ($5.79). The company had revenue of $920.01 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $905.98 million. iHeartMedia had a negative return on equity of 296.03% and a negative net margin of 34.77%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that iHeartMedia will post -7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Robert W. Pittman bought 58,480 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $3.44 per share, for a total transaction of $201,171.20. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 3,066,359 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,548,274.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On iHeartMedia

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in iHeartMedia by 1.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,788,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,082,000 after purchasing an additional 105,422 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in iHeartMedia by 2.5% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 8,845,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,199,000 after acquiring an additional 215,304 shares during the period. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in iHeartMedia by 41.1% in the second quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 5,686,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,655,529 shares during the last quarter. Silver Point Capital L.P. grew its holdings in shares of iHeartMedia by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. Silver Point Capital L.P. now owns 5,546,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,998,000 after purchasing an additional 665,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in shares of iHeartMedia by 12.2% during the 2nd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,011,941 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,654,000 after purchasing an additional 437,538 shares during the period. 63.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About iHeartMedia

iHeartMedia, Inc operates as a media and entertainment company worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Multiplatform Group, Digital Audio Group, and Audio & Media Services Group. The Multiplatform Group segment offers broadcast radio stations, sponsorship, and live and virtual events; and operates Premiere Networks, a national radio network that produces, distributes, or represents syndicated radio programs and services to radio station affiliates.