Starz Entertainment Corp. (NASDAQ:STRZ) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Starz Entertainment Corp. (NASDAQ:STRZ) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation, two have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $31.50.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on STRZ shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Starz Entertainment from $13.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. B. Riley Financial assumed coverage on shares of Starz Entertainment in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Starz Entertainment in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Starz Entertainment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Starz Entertainment in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Starz Entertainment news, CEO Jeffrey Hirsch acquired 10,000 shares of Starz Entertainment stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $24.80 per share, for a total transaction of $248,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 65,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,612,000. This represents a 18.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider James M. Kapenstein purchased 1,000 shares of Starz Entertainment stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.73 per share, with a total value of $25,730.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 12,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $316,530.46. This trade represents a 8.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 22.62% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Starz Entertainment

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Starz Entertainment during the first quarter valued at $577,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC boosted its position in Starz Entertainment by 15.5% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 710,862 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,317,000 after purchasing an additional 95,245 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Starz Entertainment during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,599,000. Strs Ohio grew its stake in shares of Starz Entertainment by 1,955.5% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 45,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $537,000 after purchasing an additional 43,667 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Starz Entertainment during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,411,000.

Starz Entertainment Stock Performance

NASDAQ STRZ opened at $25.87 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. Starz Entertainment has a 12-month low of $8.40 and a 12-month high of $32.58. The firm has a market cap of $442.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.01 and a beta of 2.44.

Starz Entertainment (NASDAQ:STRZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported ($11.27) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.59) by ($10.68). The company had revenue of $307.90 million during the quarter. Starz Entertainment had a negative return on equity of 25.64% and a negative net margin of 33.98%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Starz Entertainment will post -6.12 EPS for the current year.

About Starz Entertainment

Starz Entertainment is a premium subscription entertainment company that provides original series, feature films and other programming through television networks and direct-to-consumer streaming services. Its offerings are marketed under the STARZ and STARZ Encore brands and are distributed through pay-TV providers, digital platforms and the Starz streaming app.

The company is known for original programming, including series associated with the “Power” universe, as well as acquired and licensed movies and television content.