iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) CEO Robert Pittman Acquires 32,468 Shares

iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) CEO Robert Pittman purchased 32,468 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $3.25 per share, for a total transaction of $105,521.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 6,214,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,198,545.25. This represents a 0.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

iHeartMedia Stock Performance

NASDAQ:IHRT traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $3.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 539,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 671,603. The company has a market capitalization of $489.52 million, a PE ratio of -1.06, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.70. iHeartMedia, Inc. has a 52-week low of $0.95 and a 52-week high of $5.44. The business’s 50-day moving average is $3.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.40.

iHeartMedia (NASDAQ:IHRT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. iHeartMedia had a negative return on equity of 1.63% and a negative net margin of 12.24%. As a group, analysts predict that iHeartMedia, Inc. will post -0.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of iHeartMedia during the third quarter worth about $25,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in iHeartMedia by 42.8% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 18,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 5,591 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in iHeartMedia by 67.7% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 3,378 shares during the period. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new position in iHeartMedia in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in iHeartMedia by 341.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 24,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 18,831 shares during the last quarter. 93.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on IHRT. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded iHeartMedia from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $4.00 to $3.50 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of iHeartMedia in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of iHeartMedia from $3.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, iHeartMedia currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $4.33.

iHeartMedia Company Profile

iHeartMedia, Inc (NASDAQ: IHRT) is a leading media and entertainment company specializing in radio broadcasting, digital streaming and live events. The company operates more than 860 full-power AM and FM radio stations across the United States, delivering music, news, sports and talk programming to local markets. Through its flagship digital platform, iHeartRadio, the company provides listeners with free and subscription-based access to thousands of live radio stations, curated music playlists and on-demand podcasts.

Originally founded in 1972 as Clear Channel Communications, the business rebranded to iHeartMedia in 2014 to reflect the growing importance of its digital and event-driven offerings.