Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) Shares Sold by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 28,907 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 5,269 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Iridium Communications were worth $877,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in IRDM. Paralel Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Iridium Communications in the second quarter worth approximately $2,323,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in shares of Iridium Communications by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 130,370 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,970,000 after purchasing an additional 21,522 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Iridium Communications by 6,491.3% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,598,532 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $42,553,000 after purchasing an additional 1,574,280 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Iridium Communications in the second quarter valued at $1,899,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Iridium Communications by 429.2% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 334,396 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $8,902,000 after buying an additional 271,203 shares during the last quarter. 84.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Iridium Communications news, insider Suzanne E. Mcbride sold 4,420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.48, for a total transaction of $130,301.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 182,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,388,855.56. This trade represents a 2.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert H. Niehaus sold 38,355 shares of Iridium Communications stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.39, for a total transaction of $1,127,253.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 254,824 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,489,277.36. This represents a 13.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Iridium Communications Stock Down 2.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:IRDM opened at $29.37 on Wednesday. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.22. The company has a market capitalization of $3.34 billion, a PE ratio of 31.24 and a beta of 0.65. Iridium Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $24.14 and a twelve month high of $41.63.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The technology company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $212.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $205.68 million. Iridium Communications had a net margin of 14.09% and a return on equity of 14.34%. On average, equities analysts predict that Iridium Communications Inc. will post 0.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Iridium Communications declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, September 19th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire up to 14.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Iridium Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. Iridium Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, BWS Financial reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Iridium Communications in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.00.

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.