Sphere Entertainment Co. $SPHR Shares Purchased by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sphere Entertainment Co. (NYSE:SPHR) by 1,422.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,640 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,890 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned 0.07% of Sphere Entertainment worth $3,581,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Sphere Entertainment by 114.2% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 871,484 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,162,000 after buying an additional 464,609 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in Sphere Entertainment by 149.9% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 559,935 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,736,000 after buying an additional 335,900 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its position in Sphere Entertainment by 118.9% during the third quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 447,982 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,227,000 after buying an additional 243,376 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Sphere Entertainment during the first quarter valued at $15,196,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its stake in Sphere Entertainment by 24.8% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 523,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,510,000 after acquiring an additional 104,192 shares in the last quarter. 92.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on SPHR. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Sphere Entertainment from $170.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Sphere Entertainment from $164.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 6th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $145.00 price target (down from $185.00) on shares of Sphere Entertainment in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $156.00 price target on shares of Sphere Entertainment in a research report on Friday, November 6th. Finally, BTIG Research decreased their price target on shares of Sphere Entertainment from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 6th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sphere Entertainment presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $156.60.

Sphere Entertainment Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:SPHR opened at $123.59 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Sphere Entertainment Co. has a 1 year low of $73.03 and a 1 year high of $181.63. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $123.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $130.98.

Sphere Entertainment (NYSE:SPHR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported ($4.84) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.66) by ($3.18). Sphere Entertainment had a negative net margin of 11.60% and a negative return on equity of 0.78%. The firm had revenue of $274.26 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $269.71 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($2.80) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Sphere Entertainment Co. will post -5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Sphere Entertainment

Sphere Entertainment Co. is a live entertainment and media company whose businesses include Sphere and MSG Networks. Sphere is a large-scale venue in Las Vegas designed for concerts, films and other events, featuring immersive visuals and sound. The company also operates Sphere Studios, which develops content and technology for the venue and other applications. MSG Networks operates regional sports and entertainment networks serving viewers in the New York metropolitan area. Its programming includes live coverage of professional sports, as well as news and other original content, with related streaming services also available to consumers.