Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $40.75.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Iridium Communications in a research note on Friday, January 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $40.00 target price for the company. BWS Financial reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of Iridium Communications in a research note on Monday, October 21st.

Iridium Communications Stock Performance

Shares of IRDM opened at $28.42 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $29.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $28.70. Iridium Communications has a 12 month low of $24.14 and a 12 month high of $37.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.23 and a beta of 0.65.

Iridium Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Iridium Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 59.58%.

Insider Transactions at Iridium Communications

In other news, insider Suzanne E. Mcbride sold 4,420 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.48, for a total value of $130,301.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 182,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,388,855.56. This represents a 2.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas Fitzpatrick sold 12,500 shares of Iridium Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.53, for a total value of $356,625.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 241,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,876,585.90. The trade was a 4.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 16,977 shares of company stock valued at $488,593 over the last ninety days. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Iridium Communications

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 19.8% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,162 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in shares of Iridium Communications by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 13,750 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $418,000 after buying an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Iridium Communications by 25.2% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,399 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 6.2% in the second quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 11,480 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $306,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Iridium Communications by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 11,731 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $340,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. 84.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Iridium Communications

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.