Citigroup Downgrades Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) to Neutral

Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) was downgraded by stock analysts at Citigroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $355.00 price objective on the stock, up from their previous price objective of $337.00. Citigroup’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 6.47% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on MSGS. Weiss Ratings raised Madison Square Garden from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on Madison Square Garden from $356.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Madison Square Garden from $240.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Seaport Research Partners raised Madison Square Garden from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $430.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Madison Square Garden from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Madison Square Garden currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $333.80.

Madison Square Garden Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE:MSGS opened at $333.43 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $8.03 billion, a P/E ratio of -483.24 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $321.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $271.45. Madison Square Garden has a 1-year low of $184.63 and a 1-year high of $345.48.

Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.66 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $403.42 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $394.58 million. The company’s revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.05 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Madison Square Garden will post -0.34 EPS for the current year.

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 value of $1,840,646.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly 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 the SEC website. 19.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Madison Square Garden

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSGS. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Madison Square Garden by 5,450.0% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 111 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Madison Square Garden in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in Madison Square Garden in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in Madison Square Garden by 67.1% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in Madison Square Garden by 488.2% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 68.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Madison Square Garden

Here are the key news stories impacting Madison Square Garden this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ticketmaster caught scalpers and is releasing/reselling additional Harry Styles MSG tickets, signaling sustained demand for premium residency nights and potential near‑term revenue upside from high-profile concerts. Harry Styles Fans Get Another Shot at MSG Tickets After Ticketmaster Takes Action Against Scalpers Ticketmaster reselling Harry Styles MSG residency tickets after catching scalpers
• Neutral Sentiment: College-event rumor: reporting that UVA may be matched with UConn at MSG is speculative but, if confirmed, would point to healthy demand for marquee college events — watch for official booking announcements. UVA Basketball: Rumor mill has ‘Hoos hooking up with UConn in MSG
• Neutral Sentiment: Context pieces on venue capacity and why Ticketmaster is releasing more Harry Styles tickets help explain inventory dynamics at MSG — useful for modeling event-level revenue but not an immediate catalyst. Why is Ticketmaster releasing more Harry Styles MSG tickets? How many seats are at Madison Square Garden? Here’s a guide to understand the MSG seating chart
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst move: Citigroup downgraded MSGS from “buy” to “neutral” despite raising its price target to $355 — the downgrade reduces buy-side conviction and can pressure sentiment even if the target implies upside. Citigroup downgrades Madison Square Garden Sports (MSGS)
• Negative Sentiment: Investigative report alleging MSG owner used surveillance on people creates reputational and potential legal risk that could weigh on the stock if it spawns litigation or regulatory scrutiny. MSG Owner Uses Surveillance to Spy on People: New Investigative Report
• Negative Sentiment: Recent quarterly results (Feb.) showed a revenue beat but an EPS miss and analysts still expect a negative full‑year EPS — mixed fundamentals that limit multiple expansion absent clear profit recovery. MarketBeat MSGS summary

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.