TKO Group Holdings, Inc. $TKO Shares Acquired by UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management increased its stake in TKO Group Holdings by 6.6%, owning approximately 0.15% of the company valued at $38.7 million as of the latest filing.
• Several hedge funds including Vanguard Group and Price T Rowe Associates significantly boosted their positions in TKO Group during the first quarter, indicating growing institutional interest.
• TKO Group has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.76, doubling from its previous payout of $0.38, and authorized a stock buyback plan of $1 billion, suggesting confidence in its stock value.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in shares of TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:TKO - Free Report) by 6.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 253,467 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,713 shares during the quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned approximately 0.15% of TKO Group worth $38,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TKO. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in TKO Group by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 1,835 shares of the company's stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC raised its stake in TKO Group by 1.1% during the first quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 7,558 shares of the company's stock worth $1,155,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. increased its stake in shares of TKO Group by 3.2% in the first quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 3,210 shares of the company's stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of TKO Group by 4.0% during the first quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,837 shares of the company's stock valued at $434,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Compass Capital Corp MA ADV increased its stake in shares of TKO Group by 3.3% during the first quarter. Compass Capital Corp MA ADV now owns 3,444 shares of the company's stock valued at $525,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.79% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on TKO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of TKO Group from $182.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Baird R W upgraded shares of TKO Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Zacks Research raised shares of TKO Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of TKO Group from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of TKO Group from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $196.50.

TKO Group Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of TKO traded down $1.52 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $201.28. 2,052,671 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,006,501. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $181.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $166.97. TKO Group Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $114.01 and a 52 week high of $212.49. The company has a market cap of $39.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.17 and a beta of 0.79.

TKO Group (NYSE:TKO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.23 by ($0.06). TKO Group had a return on equity of 2.82% and a net margin of 5.40%.The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 EPS. The business's revenue was up 53.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that TKO Group Holdings, Inc. will post 3.88 EPS for the current year.

TKO Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This is a positive change from TKO Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. TKO Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 125.62%.

TKO Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Monday, September 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Peter C. B. Bynoe acquired 740 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $203.00 per share, for a total transaction of $150,220.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,052,961. This trade represents a 16.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Nick Khan sold 9,519 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.43, for a total transaction of $1,774,627.17. Following the sale, the director directly owned 137,456 shares in the company, valued at $25,625,922.08. This trade represents a 6.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 73,725 shares of company stock valued at $12,767,807 over the last quarter. 61.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About TKO Group

TKO Group Holdings, Inc operates as a sports and entertainment company. The company produces and licenses live events, television programs, and long-form and short-form content, reality series, and other filmed entertainment on digital and linear channels and via pay-per-view. It is involved in the merchandising of video games, apparel, equipment, trading cards, memorabilia, digital goods, and toys, as well as sale of travel packages and tickets.