JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for IMAX (NYSE:IMAX) Stock Price

Key Points

• JPMorgan trimmed its price target on IMAX to $47 (from $48) but kept an "overweight" rating—its target implies roughly a 31% upside versus the recent close, while the Street consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with a $44 target.
• Insider selling has been notable: senior insiders (including Kevin Douglas and CEO Richard Gelfond) recently sold large blocks of shares, and insiders disposed of about 1.05M shares (~$40.1M) in the last 90 days.
• Recent fundamentals are mixed: Q1 showed a modest EPS beat but revenue fell ~6% YoY ($81.4M), the stock dropped to $35.84 (down ~5.7% on the session), and valuation remains elevated (P/E ~57.8).

IMAX (NYSE:IMAX - Get Free Report) had its target price dropped by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $48.00 to $47.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price suggests a potential upside of 31.14% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on IMAX. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on IMAX from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $47.00 target price on shares of IMAX in a report on Monday, April 20th. Benchmark increased their price target on shares of IMAX from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Macquarie Infrastructure lifted their price objective on shares of IMAX from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Barrington Research set a $46.00 price objective on shares of IMAX in a research note on Friday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.00.

IMAX Stock Down 5.7%

IMAX stock traded down $2.18 during trading on Friday, hitting $35.84. 2,350,746 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,104,589. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.80, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.42. IMAX has a 1 year low of $22.54 and a 1 year high of $43.16.

IMAX (NYSE:IMAX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.15. IMAX had a return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 8.50%.The company had revenue of $125.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $120.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.27 earnings per share. IMAX's revenue was up 35.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that IMAX will post 1.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Kevin Douglas sold 330,200 shares of IMAX stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.82, for a total transaction of $12,488,164.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 3,657,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $138,324,759. The trade was a 8.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard L. Gelfond sold 135,046 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.82, for a total transaction of $5,107,439.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 765,002 shares in the company, valued at $28,932,375.64. This trade represents a 15.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,054,284 shares of company stock valued at $40,062,532. Corporate insiders own 23.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP acquired a new position in IMAX in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $20,975,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in IMAX by 67.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 70,927 shares of the company's stock worth $2,323,000 after buying an additional 28,667 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in IMAX by 267.7% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 66,769 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,187,000 after acquiring an additional 48,609 shares during the period. Zhang Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of IMAX in the 3rd quarter valued at $903,000. Finally, Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust purchased a new stake in shares of IMAX in the 3rd quarter valued at $4,893,000. 93.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

IMAX News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting IMAX this week:

• Positive Sentiment: IMAX expanded its theater footprint with Hoyts, adding a 10‑location rollout across Australia and New Zealand — strengthens international capacity and box‑office runway in ANZ. IMAX & HOYTS Expand Partnership To Rollout New Cinemas Across ANZ
• Positive Sentiment: Content tailwinds: IMAX cited hits like Project Hail Mary as a meaningful Q1 box‑office contributor, showing the company can still extract premium revenue from marquee titles. Imax Hails ‘Project Hail Mary' For Q1 Boost Amid Tough Comparisons With Last Year's ‘Ne Zha 2' Bounty
• Positive Sentiment: Brand/PR wins: specialty programming (e.g., IMAX 70mm presentation of Apollo 11 in London) supports premium positioning and ancillary revenue potential. IMAX 70mm Version Of Apollo 11 Doc Now Showing At London Science Museum
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1 results were mixed: EPS beat at $0.17 (vs. $0.15 est.) and revenue slightly above estimates at $81.38M, but revenue was down ~6% YoY — a beat on the street but showing soft top‑line momentum. IMAX Corporation Reports First Quarter 2026 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors can dig into the full Q1 call transcript for detail on regional trends, theatre installs and content cadence. IMAX Corporation (IMAX) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale: IMAX’s CEO sold about $333,842 of stock recently — a signal some investors interpret as a negative near‑term indicator. Insider Selling: IMAX NYSE: IMAX CEO Sells $333,842.19 in Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Press coverage emphasized that revenue and profit slipped despite big titles, reinforcing concerns over a tougher comps backdrop (last year’s Ne Zha 2) and near‑term top‑line pressure. Imax Q1 Revenue and Profit Decline Despite Hits Like ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ and ‘Project Hail Mary’

IMAX Company Profile

IMAX Corporation is a global leader in immersive entertainment technologies, specializing in the design, manufacture and distribution of high-resolution cameras, projectors, and proprietary software solutions that enhance both film production and theatrical exhibition. The company licenses its premium large-format system to theatre owners and filmmakers around the world, enabling audiences to experience movies with greater clarity, scale and sound fidelity. IMAX also offers turnkey theatre development services, assisting cinema operators with auditorium design, installation and custom branding to optimize the customer experience.

Founded in 1967 and headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, IMAX has built a reputation for pioneering film-format innovations, including its patented dual 15-perforation, 70-millimeter projection system.

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