Sirius XM (NASDAQ:SIRI) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Sirius XM shares gapped higher, opening at $29.01 versus a prior close of $27.62, while trading near $29.39. The stock has a market capitalization of approximately $9.86 billion and a 3.7% dividend yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with five Buy, five Hold and three Sell ratings; the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $32.00.
• The company’s latest quarter showed revenue up 1% to $2.16 billion but EPS missed estimates. New music and sports programming could support engagement, while reduced Howard Stern programming and expanded HBO Max distribution raise concerns about exclusivity and subscriber retention.

Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:SIRI - Get Free Report) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $27.62, but opened at $29.01. Sirius XM shares last traded at $29.3910, with a volume of 856,971 shares.

Key Sirius XM News

Here are the key news stories impacting Sirius XM this week:

• Positive Sentiment: SiriusXM launched a dedicated Earth, Wind & Fire music channel, adding themed programming that could support listener engagement and seasonal subscription interest. SiriusXM launches special Earth, Wind & Fire channel
• Positive Sentiment: The company is expanding local sports talk content by bringing WFAN hosts to SiriusXM, potentially strengthening its live sports and regional programming offering. SiriusXM is going local with WFAN sports talk hosts
• Neutral Sentiment: Howard Stern’s show will also be distributed in a weekly video format on HBO Max. The arrangement may expand the show’s audience and visibility, but it gives another platform greater access to SiriusXM-related content and does not eliminate concerns about SiriusXM’s reduced exclusivity. Howard Stern returns for new season and expands to HBO Max
• Neutral Sentiment: A head-to-head review comparing Sirius XM with MNC Media Investment provides an investor comparison but does not appear to introduce a new operating or financial catalyst. Head-to-head review of Sirius XM and MNC Media Investment
• Negative Sentiment: SiriusXM eliminated Howard 101, one of Howard Stern’s longtime channels, and handed the channel’s programming slot to Andy Cohen. Stern’s SiriusXM show is also being reduced to once weekly as he expands to HBO Max. The changes suggest a gradual retreat from Stern-centered programming and could raise concerns about subscriber retention, content costs, and the company’s ability to maintain a major exclusive draw. Howard Stern cuts SiriusXM show and signs HBO Max deal

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Sirius XM from $24.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Sirius XM from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Sirius XM in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price target (up from $34.00) on shares of Sirius XM in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Sirius XM in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sirius XM currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.00.

Sirius XM Stock Performance

The company's 50 day simple moving average is $29.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market cap of $9.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.71, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.95.

Sirius XM (NASDAQ:SIRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.08). Sirius XM had a net margin of 10.23% and a return on equity of 9.37%. The firm had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.57 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sirius XM Holdings Inc. will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Sirius XM Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. Sirius XM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sirius XM news, Director Jonelle Procope sold 16,672 shares of Sirius XM stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.97, for a total transaction of $499,659.84. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $550,069.38. The trade was a 47.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.27% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sirius XM

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in Sirius XM in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Sirius XM by 158.5% in the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,295 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in Sirius XM by 612.8% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,390 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,195 shares during the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sirius XM during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd grew its stake in shares of Sirius XM by 36.7% in the first quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 1,553 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 417 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 10.69% of the company's stock.

Sirius XM Company Profile

Sirius XM Holdings Inc is a leading audio entertainment company specializing in subscription-based satellite and streaming radio services. Formed in 2008 through the merger of Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio, the company delivers a broad range of programming across music, sports, news, talk and comedy channels. Sirius XM's offerings include exclusive live sports play-by-play, artist-curated music channels, news coverage from major networks and original talk and entertainment series.

Headquartered in New York City, Sirius XM serves listeners throughout the United States and Canada, reaching tens of millions of subscribers.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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