Van Berkom & Associates Inc. Cuts Position in Iridium Communications Inc (NASDAQ:IRDM)

Key Points

• Van Berkom & Associates Inc. reduced its holdings in Iridium Communications by 9.0%, now holding 2,885,345 shares, which is about 2.5% of their portfolio.
• Iridium Communications recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.15 per share, marking a boost from $0.14 and providing an annualized yield of 2.34%.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Iridium's stock, with ratings ranging from "strong buy" to "hold," containing an average price target of $35.20.

Van Berkom & Associates Inc. decreased its stake in Iridium Communications Inc (NASDAQ:IRDM - Free Report) by 9.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,885,345 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 286,605 shares during the quarter. Iridium Communications makes up 2.5% of Van Berkom & Associates Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. owned about 2.67% of Iridium Communications worth $78,828,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of IRDM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Iridium Communications by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 631,852 shares of the technology company's stock worth $18,336,000 after acquiring an additional 10,195 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Iridium Communications in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $247,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Iridium Communications by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,961 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $108,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in shares of Iridium Communications by 369.5% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 69,562 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,019,000 after acquiring an additional 54,747 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in shares of Iridium Communications by 85.8% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 26,627 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $727,000 after acquiring an additional 12,297 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.36% of the company's stock.

Iridium Communications Stock Performance

Iridium Communications stock traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $24.98. 592,558 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,383,992. The stock has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 2.51. Iridium Communications Inc has a 52-week low of $19.91 and a 52-week high of $35.85. The firm's 50 day moving average is $28.86 and its 200 day moving average is $27.93.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The technology company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.03). Iridium Communications had a net margin of 13.20% and a return on equity of 20.28%. The company had revenue of $216.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $214.73 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.27 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Iridium Communications Inc will post 0.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Iridium Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a boost from Iridium Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Iridium Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on IRDM shares. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Iridium Communications in a research note on Monday, May 5th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Iridium Communications from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and set a $39.00 target price (down from $47.00) on shares of Iridium Communications in a research note on Friday, July 25th. William Blair raised shares of Iridium Communications from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Iridium Communications from $38.00 to $31.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Iridium Communications has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $33.80.

Iridium Communications Profile

Iridium Communications Inc provides mobile voice and data communications services and products to businesses, the United States and international governments, non-governmental organizations, and consumers worldwide. The company offers postpaid mobile voice and data satellite communications; prepaid mobile voice satellite communications; push-to-talk; broadband data; and Internet of Things (IoT) services.