IMAX (NYSE:IMAX) Sets New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

IMAX Corporation (NYSE:IMAX) shares hit a new 52-week high on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded the stock from a neutral rating to an overweight rating. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now has a $47.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $32.00. IMAX traded as high as $39.79 and last traded at $39.0150, with a volume of 16006 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.17.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price objective on IMAX from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Wedbush increased their price objective on IMAX from $39.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of IMAX from $34.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of IMAX from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $22.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Barrington Research increased their target price on shares of IMAX from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.80.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Giovanni M. Dolci sold 6,188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.25, for a total value of $211,939.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 33,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,130,250. This represents a 15.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert D. Lister sold 50,143 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.67, for a total transaction of $1,738,457.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 161,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,596,466.07. This represents a 23.70% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 23.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IMAX

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in IMAX by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 104,510 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,754,000 after buying an additional 1,309 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of IMAX during the 1st quarter valued at about $4,438,000. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in IMAX during the 1st quarter worth approximately $289,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of IMAX by 14.6% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 117,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,084,000 after buying an additional 14,886 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of IMAX by 3.4% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 354,233 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,334,000 after acquiring an additional 11,588 shares during the period. 93.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

IMAX Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.07, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $34.45 and its 200 day moving average is $30.58.

IMAX (NYSE:IMAX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.16. IMAX had a return on equity of 9.91% and a net margin of 10.47%.The company had revenue of $106.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $102.88 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.35 earnings per share. IMAX’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that IMAX Corporation will post 0.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About IMAX

IMAX Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a technology platform for entertainment and events worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Content Solutions and Technology Products and Services. The company offers IMAX DMR, a proprietary technology that digitally remasters films and other content into IMAX formats for distribution to the IMAX network; IMAX Enhanced that provides end-to-end technology across streaming content and entertainment devices at home; and SSIMWAVE, an AI-driven video quality solutions for media and entertainment companies.