Swiss National Bank Purchases 32,800 Shares of Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. $LYV

Swiss National Bank lifted its position in Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:LYV) by 7.4% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 477,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 32,800 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Live Nation Entertainment were worth $72,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in Live Nation Entertainment in the 1st quarter worth approximately $12,062,000. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Live Nation Entertainment during the first quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Live Nation Entertainment by 25.8% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,319,123 shares of the company’s stock worth $353,690,000 after acquiring an additional 475,373 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Live Nation Entertainment by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 22,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,432,000 after acquiring an additional 1,174 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Live Nation Entertainment by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 4,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. 74.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Live Nation Entertainment Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:LYV opened at $177.77 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $173.01 and its 200 day moving average is $160.49. The company has a market cap of $41.87 billion, a PE ratio of -100.43 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.93, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. has a 1 year low of $125.34 and a 1 year high of $188.00.

Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE:LYV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($1.85) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.35) by ($1.50). Live Nation Entertainment had a return on equity of 45.92% and a net margin of 0.15%.The business had revenue of $3.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.32) earnings per share. Live Nation Entertainment’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. will post 0.96 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP John Hopmans sold 93,078 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.07, for a total value of $15,457,463.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 188,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,345,878.57. This trade represents a 33.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael Rowles sold 63,776 shares of Live Nation Entertainment stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.24, for a total transaction of $10,474,570.24. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 204,716 shares in the company, valued at $33,622,555.84. The trade was a 23.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on LYV. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Live Nation Entertainment from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Live Nation Entertainment from $199.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Live Nation Entertainment from $181.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Live Nation Entertainment from $180.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Live Nation Entertainment from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $193.75.

Live Nation Entertainment Profile

Live Nation Entertainment is a global live entertainment company that promotes, operates and sells tickets for live events. The company’s core activities include concert promotion and production, venue operations and management, ticketing services through its Ticketmaster platform, artist management and development, and sponsorship and advertising services tied to live events. These integrated businesses are designed to connect artists, fans and commercial partners across the live event ecosystem.

The company in its current form was created following the 2010 merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster, combining a promoter and venue operator with one of the industry’s largest ticketing platforms.