Needham & Company LLC Lowers Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) to Hold

Needham & Company LLC lowered shares of Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Moffett Nathanson upgraded Paramount Global from a sell rating to a neutral rating and set a $13.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a neutral rating and set a $13.00 price objective on shares of Paramount Global in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Benchmark dropped their price objective on shares of Paramount Global from $30.00 to $19.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Raymond James reissued a market perform rating on shares of Paramount Global in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Paramount Global from $20.00 to $15.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $13.58.

Paramount Global Trading Down 7.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PARA traded down $0.97 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $12.89. The stock had a trading volume of 66,615,145 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,278,648. The company’s 50 day moving average is $11.52 and its 200-day moving average is $12.88. Paramount Global has a 12-month low of $10.12 and a 12-month high of $19.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market cap of $8.41 billion, a PE ratio of -92.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.74.

Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $7.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.73 billion. Paramount Global had a negative net margin of 0.15% and a positive return on equity of 3.35%. The company’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.09 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Paramount Global will post 1.23 EPS for the current year.

Paramount Global Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 17th. Paramount Global’s payout ratio is -133.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Paramount Global

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PARA. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Paramount Global by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 14,855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 769 shares during the last quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Paramount Global by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 7,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC grew its position in Paramount Global by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 29,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 879 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Paramount Global by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 134,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,985,000 after purchasing an additional 887 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in Paramount Global by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 18,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 889 shares during the last quarter. 73.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Paramount Global Company Profile

Paramount Global operates as a media, streaming, and entertainment company worldwide. It operates through TV Media, Direct-to-Consumer, and Filmed Entertainment segments. The TV Media segment operates CBS Television Network, a domestic broadcast television network; CBS Stations, a television station; and international free-to-air networks comprising Network 10, Channel 5, Telefe, and Chilevisión; domestic premium and basic cable networks, such as Paramount+ with Showtime, MTV, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, The Smithsonian Channel, Nickelodeon, BET Media Group, and CBS Sports Network; and international extensions of these brands.