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

iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) has earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the five analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $4.3333.

IHRT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of iHeartMedia in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded iHeartMedia from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $4.00 to $3.50 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of iHeartMedia from $3.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On iHeartMedia

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of iHeartMedia during the third quarter worth about $25,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in iHeartMedia by 42.8% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 18,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 5,591 shares during the period. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in iHeartMedia in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of iHeartMedia by 341.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 24,342 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 18,831 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of iHeartMedia by 757.0% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 15,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 14,065 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.89% of the company’s stock.

iHeartMedia Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:IHRT opened at $3.85 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $578.12 million, a PE ratio of -1.49, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.67. The company’s fifty day moving average is $4.07 and its 200 day moving average is $3.11. iHeartMedia has a 52 week low of $0.95 and a 52 week high of $5.44.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.64. iHeartMedia had a negative net margin of 10.37% and a negative return on equity of 1.63%. The business had revenue of $997.01 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that iHeartMedia will post -0.13 EPS for the current year.

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.