Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) Director Sells $1,127,253.45 in Stock

Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) Director Robert H. Niehaus sold 38,355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.39, for a total transaction of $1,127,253.45. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 254,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,489,277.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Iridium Communications Trading Down 2.8 %

NASDAQ:IRDM traded down $0.84 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $28.94. 989,205 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,091,363. The company has a fifty day moving average of $28.46 and a 200 day moving average of $28.07. Iridium Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.14 and a 12 month high of $41.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 2.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 139.19 and a beta of 0.65.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.10. Iridium Communications had a net margin of 11.08% and a return on equity of 10.23%. The business had revenue of $201.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $204.01 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.24) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Iridium Communications Inc. will post 0.81 EPS for the current year.

Iridium Communications announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, September 19th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to purchase up to 14.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Iridium Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. Iridium Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 266.67%.

Institutional Trading of Iridium Communications

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IRDM. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Iridium Communications by 7,684.6% during the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,012 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 999 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Iridium Communications during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Iridium Communications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Iridium Communications by 109.7% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,491 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Iridium Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 84.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BWS Financial reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Iridium Communications in a report on Monday. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Iridium Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.00.

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.