IREN (NASDAQ:IREN) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of IREN Limited (NASDAQ:IREN) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $45.83, but opened at $48.97. IREN shares last traded at $52.9420, with a volume of 14,074,260 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on IREN. Citigroup started coverage on shares of IREN in a research note on Wednesday. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of IREN from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, November 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of IREN from $27.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Citizens Jmp started coverage on IREN in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “market outperform” rating and a $80.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $24.00 price target (up previously from $16.00) on shares of IREN in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, IREN presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.36.

IREN Stock Up 6.0%

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $53.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.65. The firm has a market cap of $13.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.99 and a beta of 4.21. The company has a current ratio of 5.52, a quick ratio of 5.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

IREN (NASDAQ:IREN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 28th. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.02. IREN had a negative return on equity of 3.60% and a net margin of 86.96%.The firm had revenue of $187.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $187.51 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that IREN Limited will post 0.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at IREN

In other news, CEO Daniel John Roberts sold 1,000,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.13, for a total transaction of $33,130,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 13,989,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $463,478,628.48. This represents a 6.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IREN

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IREN. Hood River Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of IREN during the second quarter valued at approximately $74,228,000. Situational Awareness LP acquired a new stake in shares of IREN during the 1st quarter valued at about $20,500,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its stake in IREN by 1,444.5% in the third quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 1,652,577 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,555,000 after acquiring an additional 1,545,579 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in IREN by 247.7% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,032,397 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,380,000 after purchasing an additional 1,447,842 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Merewether Investment Management LP bought a new position in IREN during the second quarter worth about $21,025,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.08% of the company’s stock.

About IREN

IREN Limited, formerly known as Iris Energy Limited, owns and operates bitcoin mining data centers. The company was incorporated in 2018 and is headquartered in Sydney, Australia.