Granby Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT)

Granby Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT - Free Report) by 80.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 899,926 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 399,926 shares during the period. iHeartMedia makes up approximately 0.9% of Granby Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 17th largest position. Granby Capital Management LLC owned about 0.61% of iHeartMedia worth $1,782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of IHRT. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in shares of iHeartMedia by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,830,745 shares of the company's stock worth $7,585,000 after purchasing an additional 789,170 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its position in iHeartMedia by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 3,000,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,940,000 after acquiring an additional 500,000 shares during the last quarter. Helix Partners Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of iHeartMedia in the fourth quarter worth approximately $911,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in iHeartMedia by 21.2% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,499,409 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,949,000 after buying an additional 436,656 shares during the period. Finally, CastleKnight Management LP grew its position in shares of iHeartMedia by 659.8% during the 4th quarter. CastleKnight Management LP now owns 456,800 shares of the company's stock worth $904,000 after buying an additional 396,675 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.89% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert W. Pittman bought 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $1.60 per share, with a total value of $320,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,241,389 shares in the company, valued at $6,786,222.40. The trade was a 4.95% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard J. Bressler bought 100,000 shares of iHeartMedia stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $1.79 per share, with a total value of $179,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 3,617,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,475,797.56. This trade represents a 2.84% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 8.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on iHeartMedia from $1.00 to $1.25 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of iHeartMedia from $5.00 to $4.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 10th.

iHeartMedia Stock Performance

NASDAQ:IHRT traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $1.25. 606,291 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 788,954. iHeartMedia, Inc. has a twelve month low of $0.81 and a twelve month high of $2.84. The company has a market capitalization of $183.24 million, a P/E ratio of -0.18 and a beta of 1.72. The company has a fifty day moving average of $1.31 and a 200 day moving average of $1.87.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.63) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.47) by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $807.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $790.17 million. On average, research analysts expect that iHeartMedia, Inc. will post -0.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

iHeartMedia Company Profile

iHeartMedia, Inc operates as an audio media company in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Multiplatform Group, Digital Audio Group, and Audio & Media Services Group. The Multiplatform Group segment offers broadcast radio stations, sponsorship and events, and live and virtual events; and operates Premiere Networks, a national radio network that produces, distributes, or represents syndicated radio programs and services to radio station affiliates.