TKO Group (NYSE:TKO) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Seaport Res Ptn

Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of TKO Group (NYSE:TKO) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for TKO Group’s FY2027 earnings at $4.03 EPS, FY2028 earnings at $4.99 EPS and FY2029 earnings at $5.38 EPS.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on TKO. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of TKO Group from $205.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of TKO Group from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of TKO Group from $182.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of TKO Group in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of TKO Group from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.21.

TKO Group Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of TKO Group stock opened at $188.26 on Wednesday. TKO Group has a 1 year low of $114.01 and a 1 year high of $212.49. The firm has a market cap of $37.33 billion, a PE ratio of 77.79 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $192.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $173.17.

TKO Group (NYSE:TKO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by ($0.06). TKO Group had a return on equity of 2.82% and a net margin of 5.40%.The business had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 53.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that TKO Group will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TKO Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is an increase from TKO Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. TKO Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 125.62%.

TKO Group announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, September 15th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at TKO Group

In other news, Director Peter C. B. Bynoe bought 740 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $203.00 per share, for a total transaction of $150,220.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 5,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,052,961. This trade represents a 16.64% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Nick Khan sold 9,519 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.82, for a total transaction of $1,883,048.58. Following the sale, the director owned 128,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,325,509.86. This represents a 6.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 73,725 shares of company stock valued at $12,966,373. 61.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of TKO Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hemington Wealth Management raised its stake in TKO Group by 425.0% in the first quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in TKO Group by 350.0% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 135 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in TKO Group in the first quarter worth about $26,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in TKO Group by 840.0% in the second quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 141 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in TKO Group in the first quarter worth about $27,000. 89.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About TKO Group

TKO Group Holdings, Inc operates as a sports and entertainment company. The company produces and licenses live events, television programs, and long-form and short-form content, reality series, and other filmed entertainment on digital and linear channels and via pay-per-view. It is involved in the merchandising of video games, apparel, equipment, trading cards, memorabilia, digital goods, and toys, as well as sale of travel packages and tickets.