IFM Investors Pty Ltd Invests $1.26 Million in Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd bought a new stake in Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 105,476 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,261,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Paramount Global by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,040,366 shares of the company's stock valued at $701,242,000 after purchasing an additional 761,561 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Paramount Global by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 20,593,954 shares of the company's stock worth $215,413,000 after acquiring an additional 1,119,314 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Paramount Global by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,567,531 shares of the company's stock worth $162,731,000 after acquiring an additional 724,565 shares during the period. Ariel Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Paramount Global by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 14,663,907 shares of the company's stock worth $153,384,000 after acquiring an additional 460,539 shares during the period. Finally, Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Paramount Global during the fourth quarter worth $146,230,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PARA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Paramount Global from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $14.00 price objective on shares of Paramount Global in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Paramount Global from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $12.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen assumed coverage on shares of Paramount Global in a research note on Saturday, May 17th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Paramount Global from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $11.67.

Paramount Global Stock Performance

NASDAQ PARA traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $12.75. The company had a trading volume of 4,082,526 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,835,811. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.29. Paramount Global has a 1-year low of $9.95 and a 1-year high of $13.29. The company has a market cap of $8.60 billion, a PE ratio of -1.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a 50 day moving average of $12.14 and a 200-day moving average of $11.48.

Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.02. Paramount Global had a negative net margin of 19.09% and a positive return on equity of 4.80%. The company had revenue of $7.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share. Paramount Global's revenue for the quarter was down 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Paramount Global will post 1.77 EPS for the current year.

Paramount Global Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. Paramount Global's dividend payout ratio is presently -2.43%.

About Paramount Global

Paramount Global operates as a media, streaming, and entertainment company worldwide. It operates through TV Media, Direct-to-Consumer, and Filmed Entertainment segments. The TV Media segment operates CBS Television Network, a domestic broadcast television network; CBS Stations, a television station; and international free-to-air networks comprising Network 10, Channel 5, Telefe, and Chilevisión; domestic premium and basic cable networks, such as Paramount+ with Showtime, MTV, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, The Smithsonian Channel, Nickelodeon, BET Media Group, and CBS Sports Network; and international extensions of these brands.