Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Thursday.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on IRDM. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Iridium Communications in a research report on Friday, January 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Iridium Communications from $45.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th.

Iridium Communications Price Performance

NASDAQ IRDM opened at $27.59 on Thursday. Iridium Communications has a twelve month low of $24.14 and a twelve month high of $35.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.00 billion, a PE ratio of 29.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.34.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The technology company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.16. Iridium Communications had a return on equity of 15.66% and a net margin of 13.58%. The business had revenue of $212.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $203.78 million. Research analysts anticipate that Iridium Communications will post 0.89 EPS for the current year.

Iridium Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. Iridium Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 58.95%.

Insider Activity at Iridium Communications

In other news, Director Thomas Fitzpatrick sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.53, for a total value of $356,625.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 241,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,876,585.90. This represents a 4.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Iridium Communications

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Iridium Communications by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,269,883 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $130,018,000 after purchasing an additional 36,851 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Iridium Communications by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,829,052 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $82,099,000 after purchasing an additional 320,506 shares during the period. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 2,827,580 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $82,028,000 after acquiring an additional 329,915 shares in the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 2,507,715 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $72,774,000 after acquiring an additional 134,924 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 44.7% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,213,512 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $64,125,000 after acquiring an additional 683,777 shares in the last quarter. 84.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Iridium Communications Company Profile

Iridium Communications Inc provides mobile voice and data communications services and products to businesses, the United States and international governments, non-governmental organizations, and consumers worldwide. The company offers postpaid mobile voice and data satellite communications; prepaid mobile voice satellite communications; push-to-talk; broadband data; and Internet of Things (IoT) services.