Citizens Jmp Initiates Coverage on Starz Entertainment (NASDAQ:STRZ)

Analysts at Citizens Jmp initiated coverage on shares of Starz Entertainment (NASDAQ:STRZ) in a report released on Monday, Briefing.com reports. The firm set an “outperform” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Citizens Jmp’s price target indicates a potential upside of 54.62% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on STRZ. Morgan Stanley set a $30.00 target price on Starz Entertainment in a report on Monday, August 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of Starz Entertainment in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered Starz Entertainment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 25th. B. Riley Financial began coverage on Starz Entertainment in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Starz Entertainment from $13.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.71.

Starz Entertainment Price Performance

NASDAQ:STRZ opened at $25.87 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $442.89 million, a PE ratio of -1.01 and a beta of 2.44. Starz Entertainment has a 12 month low of $8.40 and a 12 month high of $32.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $26.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.00.

Starz Entertainment (NASDAQ:STRZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 7th. The company reported ($11.27) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.59) by ($10.68). The firm had revenue of $307.90 million for the quarter. Starz Entertainment had a negative return on equity of 25.64% and a negative net margin of 33.98%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Starz Entertainment will post -6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Starz Entertainment

In other Starz Entertainment news, CEO Jeffrey Hirsch bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $24.80 per share, with a total value of $248,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 65,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,612,000. This trade represents a 18.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider James M. Kapenstein purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $25.73 per share, with a total value of $25,730.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 12,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $316,530.46. This represents a 8.85% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 22.62% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Starz Entertainment

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in STRZ. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Starz Entertainment during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,599,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Starz Entertainment in the second quarter worth $13,911,000. Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in Starz Entertainment by 21.5% in the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 440,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,156,000 after purchasing an additional 78,000 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Starz Entertainment in the second quarter valued at about $11,826,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Starz Entertainment during the second quarter worth about $5,076,000.

About Starz Entertainment

Starz Entertainment is a premium subscription entertainment company that provides original series, feature films and other programming through television networks and direct-to-consumer streaming services. Its offerings are marketed under the STARZ and STARZ Encore brands and are distributed through pay-TV providers, digital platforms and the Starz streaming app.

The company is known for original programming, including series associated with the “Power” universe, as well as acquired and licensed movies and television content.