Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) Upgraded to "Hold" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Madison Square Garden Sports from “sell” to “hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold,” with four Buy ratings and five Hold ratings and an average price target of $471.20.
• MSGS shares opened at $407.48, near the upper end of their 52-week range of $193.87 to $438.93. The company recently reported quarterly EPS of $1.16, beating estimates of $0.64, while revenue rose 36.6% year over year to $278.75 million.
• Institutional investors own approximately 68.94% of the stock, with several funds increasing or initiating positions during the second quarter.

Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on MSGS. Zacks Research raised Madison Square Garden from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Seaport Research Partners raised their price objective on shares of Madison Square Garden from $430.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Madison Square Garden from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Madison Square Garden from $450.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Madison Square Garden from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $450.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Madison Square Garden has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $471.20.

Madison Square Garden Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MSGS opened at $407.48 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $391.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $351.72. Madison Square Garden has a 52 week low of $193.87 and a 52 week high of $438.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.81 billion, a PE ratio of 1,358.31 and a beta of 0.62.

Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.52. Madison Square Garden had a net margin of 0.67% and a negative return on equity of 3.47%. The firm had revenue of $278.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $227.67 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.07) earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 36.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Madison Square Garden will post -0.74 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Madison Square Garden

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Odyssean LLC increased its position in shares of Madison Square Garden by 64.4% in the second quarter. Odyssean LLC now owns 7,728 shares of the company's stock worth $3,105,000 after purchasing an additional 3,028 shares during the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Madison Square Garden by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 1,775 shares of the company's stock valued at $713,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. AXQ Capital LP bought a new stake in Madison Square Garden in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,638,000. Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in Madison Square Garden during the 2nd quarter valued at $339,000. Finally, BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Madison Square Garden during the second quarter worth about $423,000. 68.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Madison Square Garden Company Profile

Madison Square Garden Sports Corp NYSE: MSGS is a leading sports and entertainment holding company focused on professional sports franchises and related media assets. The company owns and operates teams such as the NBA's New York Knicks, the NHL's New York Rangers and the WNBA's New York Liberty. Through these flagship franchises, MSG Sports offers a range of products and services including ticketing, premium seating and sponsorship opportunities, targeting fans in the New York metropolitan area and beyond.

In addition to team operations, Madison Square Garden Sports Corp holds a majority stake in MSG Networks, a regional cable network that broadcasts live sporting events, news and original programming.

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