Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 1,001,905 Shares of Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. $LYV

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group bought 1,001,905 shares in Q4 (a 10.3% increase), now owning 10,727,681 shares — ~4.57% of Live Nation worth about $1.53 billion and making it Principal's 22nd-largest holding.
• Live Nation reported $6.31 billion in quarterly revenue (up 11.1% YoY) beating estimates, but posted an EPS of ($1.06), missing consensus by $0.06; net margin was 1.79% with ROE of 48.11%.
• Analysts have a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $187.10 (20 Buys, 2 Holds, 1 Sell), and institutional investors hold roughly 74.52% of the stock.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:LYV - Free Report) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,727,681 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,001,905 shares during the quarter. Live Nation Entertainment comprises 0.8% of Principal Financial Group Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 4.57% of Live Nation Entertainment worth $1,528,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Live Nation Entertainment during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,606,000. Profund Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Live Nation Entertainment by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 11,141 shares of the company's stock worth $1,820,000 after acquiring an additional 3,767 shares in the last quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Live Nation Entertainment during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,191,000. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of Live Nation Entertainment during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,015,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Live Nation Entertainment by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 334,934 shares of the company's stock worth $54,728,000 after purchasing an additional 26,116 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.52% of the company's stock.

Live Nation Entertainment Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of LYV opened at $157.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $157.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $148.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.51, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $37.12 billion, a PE ratio of -657.91 and a beta of 1.11. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $125.34 and a fifty-two week high of $175.25.

Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE:LYV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported ($1.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.00) by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.12 billion. Live Nation Entertainment had a net margin of 1.79% and a return on equity of 48.11%. The company's revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.58 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LYV has been the subject of several research reports. Citizens Jmp initiated coverage on Live Nation Entertainment in a research report on Monday, March 30th. They set a "market outperform" rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Live Nation Entertainment from $204.00 to $203.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on Live Nation Entertainment from $164.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Zacks Research lowered Live Nation Entertainment from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Live Nation Entertainment from $183.00 to $180.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $187.10.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Live Nation Entertainment news, Director Jeffrey T. Hinson sold 944 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.87, for a total value of $156,581.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 48,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,966,736.10. The trade was a 1.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 2.89% of the company's stock.

About Live Nation Entertainment

Live Nation Entertainment is a global live entertainment company that promotes, operates and sells tickets for live events. The company's core activities include concert promotion and production, venue operations and management, ticketing services through its Ticketmaster platform, artist management and development, and sponsorship and advertising services tied to live events. These integrated businesses are designed to connect artists, fans and commercial partners across the live event ecosystem.

The company in its current form was created following the 2010 merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster, combining a promoter and venue operator with one of the industry's largest ticketing platforms.

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