Sphere Entertainment Co. (NYSE:SPHR) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Sphere Entertainment Co. (NYSE:SPHR - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the nine brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $45.67.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Susquehanna began coverage on Sphere Entertainment in a research report on Monday, April 28th. They issued a "positive" rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark reaffirmed a "sell" rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Sphere Entertainment in a research report on Monday. Macquarie cut their target price on Sphere Entertainment from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Sphere Entertainment from $45.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $36.00 target price on Sphere Entertainment and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sphere Entertainment news, insider F. Dolan 2009 Revocabl Charles sold 55,385 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.80, for a total value of $1,872,013.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 25.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sphere Entertainment

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ariel Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sphere Entertainment by 9.6% in the first quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 6,298,139 shares of the company's stock valued at $206,075,000 after purchasing an additional 553,947 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Sphere Entertainment by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,794,862 shares of the company's stock worth $112,689,000 after purchasing an additional 29,402 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Sphere Entertainment by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,465,363 shares of the company's stock worth $59,084,000 after purchasing an additional 9,837 shares in the last quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP grew its position in Sphere Entertainment by 183.8% in the 4th quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 926,100 shares of the company's stock worth $37,340,000 after purchasing an additional 599,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Sphere Entertainment by 132.0% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 628,886 shares of the company's stock worth $20,577,000 after purchasing an additional 357,794 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.03% of the company's stock.

Sphere Entertainment Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE SPHR traded down $0.18 during trading on Friday, reaching $39.31. The company had a trading volume of 473,091 shares, compared to its average volume of 811,829. The company's fifty day moving average price is $30.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.67. Sphere Entertainment has a 12 month low of $23.89 and a 12 month high of $50.88. The stock has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.74 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Sphere Entertainment (NYSE:SPHR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($2.27) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($2.48) by $0.21. Sphere Entertainment had a negative return on equity of 16.48% and a negative net margin of 32.76%. The firm had revenue of $280.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $285.01 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($1.33) EPS. The business's revenue was down 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Sphere Entertainment will post -11.47 earnings per share for the current year.

About Sphere Entertainment

Sphere Entertainment Co engages in the entertainment business. It produces, presents, or hosts various live entertainment events, including concerts, family shows, and special events, as well as sporting events, such as professional boxing, college basketball and hockey, professional bull riding, mixed martial arts, and esports and wrestling in its venues, including The Garden, Hulu Theater, Radio City Music Hall, and the Beacon Theatre in New York City; and The Chicago Theatre.