Brokerages Set Iridium Communications Inc (NASDAQ:IRDM) PT at $41.20

Iridium Communications Inc (NASDAQ:IRDM) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the eight analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $41.20.

Several brokerages have issued reports on IRDM. New Street Research upgraded Iridium Communications from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Iridium Communications from $26.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Iridium Communications from $48.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Iridium Communications in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, William Blair downgraded shares of Iridium Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th.

Iridium Communications Price Performance

Iridium Communications stock opened at $46.77 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $47.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.42. The company has a quick ratio of 2.31, a current ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70. Iridium Communications has a 52 week low of $15.65 and a 52 week high of $57.18. The stock has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.87.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The technology company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $225.24 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $220.32 million. Iridium Communications had a net margin of 10.55% and a return on equity of 22.57%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.20 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Iridium Communications will post 0.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Iridium Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Iridium Communications’s payout ratio is 68.18%.

Insider Activity at Iridium Communications

In related news, Director Thomas Fitzpatrick sold 15,046 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.20, for a total transaction of $740,263.20. Following the sale, the director owned 43,260 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,128,392. This represents a 25.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Suzanne E. Mcbride sold 85,454 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.28, for a total value of $4,296,627.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 282,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,179,814.76. This represents a 23.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 381,688 shares of company stock worth $19,146,390 in the last 90 days. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Iridium Communications

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Iridium Communications by 19.4% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,023 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $166,000 after purchasing an additional 491 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,677 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 5.3% in the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 14,971 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $415,000 after purchasing an additional 753 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Iridium Communications by 5.5% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 18,391 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $510,000 after buying an additional 957 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Iridium Communications by 69.2% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,548 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 1,042 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.36% of the company’s stock.

About Iridium Communications

Iridium Communications Inc provides global satellite-based voice and data communications services. Its network is designed to support connectivity across land, oceans, airways and polar regions, serving customers in areas where terrestrial communications infrastructure is limited or unavailable.

The company offers satellite phones, broadband and narrowband data services, push-to-talk communications, and Internet of Things connectivity. Its product portfolio includes Iridium Certus broadband services, Iridium GO! satellite Wi-Fi products, satellite phones, specialized IoT services and solutions for asset tracking, monitoring and machine-to-machine communications.