Ameriprise Financial Inc. Acquires 150,552 Shares of IMAX Corporation $IMAX

Key Points

• Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in IMAX Corporation by 8.3%, owning approximately 3.67% of the company worth about $52 million after acquiring an additional 150,552 shares in Q1.
• IMAX's quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $0.26, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.19, with revenue of $91.68 million, slightly below the forecasted $93.04 million.
• The company has approved a $100 million stock repurchase plan, allowing it to buy back up to 6.5% of its stock, signaling confidence from its board in the company's value.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of IMAX Corporation (NYSE:IMAX - Free Report) by 8.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,974,068 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 150,552 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned 3.67% of IMAX worth $52,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in IMAX. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV bought a new stake in shares of IMAX in the 1st quarter worth approximately $59,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in IMAX by 415.4% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,236 shares of the company's stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 5,832 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in IMAX during the first quarter valued at approximately $202,000. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury grew its position in IMAX by 19.8% during the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 9,827 shares of the company's stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 1,627 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in IMAX during the first quarter valued at approximately $289,000. 93.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Kenneth Ian Weissman sold 15,072 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.65, for a total transaction of $386,596.80. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 26,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $670,311.45. This represents a 36.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 23.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on IMAX. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of IMAX from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Benchmark upped their target price on shares of IMAX from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of IMAX from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "sell" rating on shares of IMAX in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of IMAX from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $32.80.

IMAX Stock Down 0.7%

NYSE:IMAX traded down $0.19 on Monday, reaching $28.53. The stock had a trading volume of 1,024,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 934,465. The company has a market capitalization of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.68. IMAX Corporation has a 1-year low of $18.76 and a 1-year high of $29.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $26.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.13.

IMAX (NYSE:IMAX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $91.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $93.04 million. IMAX had a net margin of 9.04% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.18 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that IMAX Corporation will post 0.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

IMAX declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, June 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

IMAX Profile

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.