Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

The Madison Square Garden Company (NYSE:MSGS)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $345.48 and last traded at $343.1920, with a volume of 9789 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $339.74.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MSGS shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Madison Square Garden from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Madison Square Garden from $240.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Seaport Research Partners upgraded Madison Square Garden from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $430.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on Madison Square Garden from $356.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Madison Square Garden from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $312.80.

Madison Square Garden Trading Down 1.3%

The firm has a market capitalization of $7.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -478.89 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $314.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $267.15.

Madison Square Garden (NYSE:MSGS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.66 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $403.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $394.58 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.05 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Madison Square Garden Company will post 0.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Charles P. Dolan sold 5,659 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.26, for a total value of $1,840,646.34. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $141,488.10. The trade was a 92.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 19.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Madison Square Garden

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in Madison Square Garden by 33.1% in the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in Madison Square Garden by 26.5% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 196 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its holdings in Madison Square Garden by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 1,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $498,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in Madison Square Garden by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $452,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its holdings in Madison Square Garden by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 1,765 shares of the company’s stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. 68.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden Sports Corp (NYSE: MSGS) is a leading sports and entertainment holding company focused on professional sports franchises and related media assets. The company owns and operates teams such as the NBA’s New York Knicks, the NHL’s New York Rangers and the WNBA’s New York Liberty. Through these flagship franchises, MSG Sports offers a range of products and services including ticketing, premium seating and sponsorship opportunities, targeting fans in the New York metropolitan area and beyond.

In addition to team operations, Madison Square Garden Sports Corp holds a majority stake in MSG Networks, a regional cable network that broadcasts live sporting events, news and original programming.