Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) Trading Up 14.6% – What’s Next?

Iridium Communications Inc (NASDAQ:IRDM)’s share price rose 14.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $21.66 and last traded at $21.15. Approximately 1,712,574 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 23% from the average daily volume of 2,225,559 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.46.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on IRDM. BWS Financial reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $16.00 price objective on shares of Iridium Communications in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Iridium Communications in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $24.00 price objective (down previously from $37.00) on shares of Iridium Communications in a report on Friday, January 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $25.00.

Iridium Communications Trading Up 21.3%

The firm has a market cap of $2.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $18.79 and its 200-day moving average is $19.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.02.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The technology company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24. Iridium Communications had a net margin of 14.44% and a return on equity of 24.93%. Iridium Communications’s revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.32 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Iridium Communications Inc will post 0.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Iridium Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Iridium Communications’s payout ratio is 53.10%.

Institutional Trading of Iridium Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Iridium Communications by 184.7% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,506 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 977 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Iridium Communications by 392.8% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,508 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,202 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in Iridium Communications during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Iridium Communications in the 2nd quarter worth $70,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Iridium Communications in the third quarter valued at about $46,000. 84.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.