Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) Raised to Hold at New Street Research

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) was upgraded by equities researchers at New Street Research to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Iridium Communications in a research report on Friday, April 24th. BWS Financial reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $16.00 price objective on shares of Iridium Communications in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Iridium Communications from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Iridium Communications from $25.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Iridium Communications from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.80.

Iridium Communications Stock Performance

NASDAQ:IRDM opened at $43.43 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.74, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a current ratio of 2.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.87, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $33.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.97. Iridium Communications has a fifty-two week low of $15.65 and a fifty-two week high of $44.61.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by ($0.07). Iridium Communications had a return on equity of 22.76% and a net margin of 12.05%.The company had revenue of $219.06 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $218.39 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.27 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Iridium Communications will post 1.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Timothy Kapalka sold 2,043 shares of Iridium Communications stock in a transaction on Monday, April 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.00, for a total transaction of $67,419.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 45,721 shares in the company, valued at $1,508,793. This trade represents a 4.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Iridium Communications

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IRDM. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 3.1% in the second quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 15,199 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $459,000 after acquiring an additional 461 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Iridium Communications by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 11,350 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $197,000 after buying an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,677 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 107.5% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,430 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 741 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 5.3% in the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 14,971 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 753 shares in the last quarter. 84.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Iridium Communications News

Here are the key news stories impacting Iridium Communications this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Iridium agreed to buy the remaining 61% of Aireon for about $366.7 million, a move that could expand its aviation safety and air-surveillance business over the long term. Iridium to Acquire Aireon, Advancing its Strategy to Lead the Future of Aviation Safety
• Positive Sentiment: Investors also reacted to reports framing the Aireon takeover as a strategic growth step that could strengthen Iridium’s position in aviation-related services. Iridium Communications Makes A Bold Move That Creates Long-Term Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: New Street Research initiated coverage on Iridium with a neutral/hold-style view, later reporting a hold rating. The firm also cited a $40 price target, which is below the current share price and may temper enthusiasm. Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) Now Covered by Analysts at New Street Research
• Neutral Sentiment: Consensus analyst ratings now point to Hold, suggesting the market sees the stock as fairly valued after its recent run-up. Iridium Communications Inc (NASDAQ:IRDM) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

About Iridium Communications

Iridium Communications Inc operates a global satellite communications network that delivers voice and data services across land, sea and air. The company’s unique architecture relies on a constellation of 66 low-Earth orbit satellites, enabling real-time connectivity in regions beyond the reach of terrestrial wireless networks. Iridium’s core offerings include satellite voice and messaging services, broadband data terminals, push-to-talk (PTT) interoperability and machine-to-machine (M2M) solutions for the Internet of Things (IoT).

Iridium serves a diverse range of markets, including maritime shipping, aviation, government and defense, energy, and enterprise.