Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes $17.61 Million Position in Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 606,938 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,613,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.53% of Iridium Communications at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in Iridium Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Iridium Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Iridium Communications by 19.8% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,162 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Iridium Communications by 44.8% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,473 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 1,074 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in Iridium Communications by 25.9% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,796 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 781 shares in the last quarter. 84.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Iridium Communications in a research report on Friday, January 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Barclays cut their target price on Iridium Communications from $45.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Iridium Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th.

Iridium Communications Stock Performance

Shares of IRDM opened at $27.65 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $29.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.38. Iridium Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $24.14 and a 52-week high of $35.85. The firm has a market cap of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.11, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The technology company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.16. Iridium Communications had a return on equity of 15.66% and a net margin of 13.58%. The business had revenue of $212.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $203.78 million. Analysts forecast that Iridium Communications Inc. will post 0.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Iridium Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. Iridium Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.95%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Thomas Fitzpatrick sold 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.53, for a total value of $356,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Iridium Communications Profile

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.