Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) Sets New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Iridium Communications hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $44.61 as investors pushed the stock higher despite mixed fundamentals.
• Recent analyst activity has been mostly cautious: the stock now has a consensus Hold rating and a consensus target price of $28.80, even as some firms raised targets or upgraded the shares.
• The company posted Q1 earnings below expectations with EPS of $0.20 versus $0.27 expected, though revenue of $219.06 million slightly beat estimates and grew 2% year over year.

Iridium Communications Inc (NASDAQ:IRDM - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $44.61 and last traded at $43.4620, with a volume of 1114831 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.09.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Iridium Communications in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Iridium Communications from $25.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Iridium Communications from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. New Street Research began coverage on Iridium Communications in a research note on Thursday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Iridium Communications from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.80.

Iridium Communications Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.85, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.74. The stock's 50 day moving average is $32.90 and its 200 day moving average is $23.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.92, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.79.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.27 by ($0.07). Iridium Communications had a return on equity of 22.76% and a net margin of 12.05%.The firm had revenue of $219.06 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $218.39 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.27 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Iridium Communications Inc will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Iridium Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. Iridium Communications's dividend payout ratio is 60.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Iridium Communications

In other Iridium Communications news, CAO Timothy Kapalka sold 2,043 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.00, for a total transaction of $67,419.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 45,721 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,508,793. This trade represents a 4.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Iridium Communications

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Iridium Communications by 265.8% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,039,731 shares of the technology company's stock worth $53,074,000 after purchasing an additional 2,208,857 shares in the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its position in Iridium Communications by 651.1% in the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 2,309,750 shares of the technology company's stock worth $40,143,000 after buying an additional 2,002,232 shares during the last quarter. Man Group plc increased its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 226.3% in the third quarter. Man Group plc now owns 2,012,077 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $35,131,000 after buying an additional 1,395,485 shares in the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 21.7% in the third quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 6,490,108 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $113,317,000 after buying an additional 1,156,580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Silver Heights Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Iridium Communications by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. Silver Heights Capital Management Inc now owns 5,189,703 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $90,612,000 after acquiring an additional 961,440 shares during the last quarter. 84.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Iridium Communications Company Profile

Iridium Communications Inc operates a global satellite communications network that delivers voice and data services across land, sea and air. The company's unique architecture relies on a constellation of 66 low-Earth orbit satellites, enabling real-time connectivity in regions beyond the reach of terrestrial wireless networks. Iridium's core offerings include satellite voice and messaging services, broadband data terminals, push-to-talk (PTT) interoperability and machine-to-machine (M2M) solutions for the Internet of Things (IoT).

Iridium serves a diverse range of markets, including maritime shipping, aviation, government and defense, energy, and enterprise.

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