iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) Trading Down 5% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• iHeartMedia shares fell about 5% in mid-day trading, slipping to around $3.75 after trading as low as $3.88. Volume was sharply below average, with 148,059 shares traded versus a typical 978,004.
• Analysts remain cautious on the stock: Bank of America cut its price target from $6 to $5 and kept a neutral rating, while Weiss Ratings reiterated a sell rating. The overall consensus is a “Reduce” rating with a target price of $4.25.
• The company’s latest earnings showed a mixed result, as EPS missed estimates at -$0.61 versus -$0.49 expected, even though revenue came in slightly ahead of forecasts at $884.2 million.

iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT - Get Free Report) fell 5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $3.88 and last traded at $3.7530. 148,059 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 978,004 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.95.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IHRT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America reduced their price target on iHeartMedia from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of iHeartMedia in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $4.25.

iHeartMedia Trading Down 5.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $565.30 million, a PE ratio of -2.03 and a beta of 2.19. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $4.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3.86.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.61) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.49) by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $884.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $871.50 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that iHeartMedia, Inc. will post -0.06 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On iHeartMedia

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of iHeartMedia by 1.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,022,354 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,154,000 after acquiring an additional 93,757 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in iHeartMedia by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,713,611 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,929,000 after purchasing an additional 741,736 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in iHeartMedia by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,774,355 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,701,000 after purchasing an additional 380,557 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of iHeartMedia by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,989,979 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,441,000 after purchasing an additional 111,754 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of iHeartMedia by 22.8% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,872,316 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,739,000 after purchasing an additional 532,414 shares in the last quarter. 93.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About iHeartMedia

iHeartMedia, Inc NASDAQ: IHRT is a leading media and entertainment company specializing in radio broadcasting, digital streaming and live events. The company operates more than 860 full-power AM and FM radio stations across the United States, delivering music, news, sports and talk programming to local markets. Through its flagship digital platform, iHeartRadio, the company provides listeners with free and subscription-based access to thousands of live radio stations, curated music playlists and on-demand podcasts.

Originally founded in 1972 as Clear Channel Communications, the business rebranded to iHeartMedia in 2014 to reflect the growing importance of its digital and event-driven offerings.

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