Live Nation Entertainment Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:LYV)

Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:LYV) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders purchased 7,833 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 78% compared to the typical daily volume of 4,398 put options.

Live Nation Entertainment Price Performance

Shares of LYV traded down $6.29 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $95.11. The stock had a trading volume of 2,612,261 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,239,073. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 90.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.34. The company’s fifty day moving average is $98.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.83, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92. Live Nation Entertainment has a 52 week low of $76.48 and a 52 week high of $107.24.

Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE:LYV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported ($0.53) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.21) by ($0.32). The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Live Nation Entertainment had a return on equity of 90.67% and a net margin of 2.22%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.25) EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Live Nation Entertainment will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on LYV. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Live Nation Entertainment in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target on shares of Live Nation Entertainment in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Live Nation Entertainment from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Live Nation Entertainment from $120.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Live Nation Entertainment from $119.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $116.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Live Nation Entertainment

In other news, Director Jeffrey T. Hinson sold 1,001 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.50, for a total transaction of $100,600.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 59,374 shares in the company, valued at $5,967,087. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Live Nation Entertainment

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Live Nation Entertainment by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 154,640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,819,000 after buying an additional 20,003 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its position in Live Nation Entertainment by 6.9% in the third quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 560,768 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,566,000 after acquiring an additional 36,298 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire bought a new position in Live Nation Entertainment in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,735,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Live Nation Entertainment during the 4th quarter valued at $788,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Live Nation Entertainment by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 567,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,164,000 after buying an additional 66,390 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.52% of the company’s stock.

About Live Nation Entertainment

Live Nation Entertainment, Inc operates as a live entertainment company worldwide. It operates through Concerts, Ticketing, and Sponsorship & Advertising segments. The Concerts segment promotes live music events in its owned or operated venues, and in rented third-party venues. This segment operates and manages music venues; produces music festivals; creates and streams associated content; and offers management and other services to artists.