Sphere Entertainment (NYSE:SPHR) Sets New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Sphere Entertainment Co. (NYSE:SPHR) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Benchmark raised their price target on the stock from $155.00 to $175.00. Benchmark currently has a buy rating on the stock. Sphere Entertainment traded as high as $158.85 and last traded at $154.8780, with a volume of 967276 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $154.38.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Citizens Jmp upped their price objective on Sphere Entertainment from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Sphere Entertainment from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Sphere Entertainment from $159.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Sphere Entertainment in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Sphere Entertainment from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sphere Entertainment currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.15.

Institutional Trading of Sphere Entertainment

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Sphere Entertainment during the third quarter worth $661,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its holdings in Sphere Entertainment by 141.0% in the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 27,947 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,657,000 after buying an additional 16,351 shares during the period. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new stake in Sphere Entertainment during the fourth quarter valued at $389,000. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Sphere Entertainment during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,045,000. Finally, Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in Sphere Entertainment by 94.0% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 50,592 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,143,000 after acquiring an additional 24,520 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.03% of the company’s stock.

Sphere Entertainment Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 88.59 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.22. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $136.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.17.

Sphere Entertainment (NYSE:SPHR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.31) by $0.27. The business had revenue of $386.41 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $313.41 million. Sphere Entertainment had a negative return on equity of 5.07% and a net margin of 8.05%.The firm’s revenue was up 37.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($2.27) earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Sphere Entertainment Co. will post -2.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Sphere Entertainment

Sphere Entertainment Co (NYSE: SPHR) is a publicly traded company focused on the development and operation of large-scale immersive entertainment venues. Established as a standalone entity in early 2023 following its separation from Madison Square Garden Entertainment, Sphere leverages cutting-edge audiovisual technologies to create next-generation concert, film and cultural experiences. The company’s flagship venue in Las Vegas showcases its core capabilities, while additional projects are in various stages of development around the world.

At the Las Vegas Sphere, Sphere Entertainment has installed one of the largest LED display surfaces on the planet, wrapping audiences in 16K resolution imagery and spatial audio powered by proprietary sound systems.