Short Interest in Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) Increases By 10.6%

Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:IRDM) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,800,000 shares, a growth of 10.6% from the October 31st total of 7,050,000 shares. Currently, 7.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,160,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.7 days.

Iridium Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:IRDM opened at $29.92 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $29.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.21. Iridium Communications has a 1 year low of $24.14 and a 1 year high of $41.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a PE ratio of 31.83 and a beta of 0.65.

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The technology company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $212.77 million for 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Iridium Communications will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Iridium Communications announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, September 19th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to buy up to 14.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert H. Niehaus sold 38,355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.39, for a total value of $1,127,253.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 254,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,489,277.36. This represents a 13.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Suzanne E. Mcbride sold 4,420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $5,388,855.56. The trade was a 2.36 % 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 insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Iridium Communications by 18.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 143,049 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,296,000 after purchasing an additional 21,857 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Iridium Communications by 19.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 856,901 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $26,093,000 after buying an additional 137,924 shares in the last quarter. Main Management ETF Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Iridium Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $922,000. XTX Topco Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Iridium Communications by 205.3% during the 3rd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 28,648 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $872,000 after acquiring an additional 19,263 shares during the period. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Iridium Communications during the 3rd quarter worth $4,614,000. 84.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Iridium Communications Company 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.