Sphere Entertainment Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:SPHR)

Sphere Entertainment Co. (NYSE:SPHR) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Investors purchased 9,207 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 169% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,422 call options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sphere Entertainment

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Trust Inc. bought a new position in Sphere Entertainment in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Sphere Entertainment in the second quarter worth $54,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Sphere Entertainment in the first quarter valued at $85,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Sphere Entertainment by 46.3% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 810 shares during the period. Finally, Quent Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Sphere Entertainment by 51.8% during the 2nd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 4,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after purchasing an additional 1,376 shares during the period. 92.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sphere Entertainment Stock Performance

Sphere Entertainment stock traded up $0.40 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $40.40. 1,135,040 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 752,735. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Sphere Entertainment has a one year low of $27.02 and a one year high of $51.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of -3.81 and a beta of 1.41.

Sphere Entertainment (NYSE:SPHR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported ($2.95) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($3.32) by $0.37. Sphere Entertainment had a negative net margin of 32.76% and a negative return on equity of 16.48%. The company had revenue of $227.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $229.86 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.90 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 93.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Sphere Entertainment will post -11.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on SPHR. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Sphere Entertainment from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Macquarie dropped their price target on shares of Sphere Entertainment from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Sphere Entertainment from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $37.00 to $57.00 in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Benchmark reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of Sphere Entertainment in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Sphere Entertainment from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.43.

About Sphere Entertainment

Sphere Entertainment Co engages in the entertainment business. It produces, presents, or hosts various live entertainment events, including concerts, family shows, and special events, as well as sporting events, such as professional boxing, college basketball and hockey, professional bull riding, mixed martial arts, and esports and wrestling in its venues, including The Garden, Hulu Theater, Radio City Music Hall, and the Beacon Theatre in New York City; and The Chicago Theatre.