6 Reasons To Be Bullish On iHeartMedia Stock

IHeartMedia Inc’s IHRT results for the first quarter of 2021 are likely to reflect a significant sequential improvement in advertising trends, healthy savings on modernization and restructuring initiatives and strong digital growth, according to BofA Securities.

The iHeartMedia Analyst: Jessica Reif Ehrlich upgraded the rating for iHeartMedia from Underperform to Buy, while raising the price target from $10 to $26.

The iHeartMedia Thesis: With the business recovering, the company is likely to reach the 2019 EBITDA levels by the fourth quarter, Reif Ehrlich said in the upgrade note.

The analyst mentioned six reasons for the upgrade:

• Prospects of a sharp upturn in advertising trends over the next several months, with the opening up of small- and medium-sized businesses and sectors across the country.
• Expectations of continued robust digital growth to “better monetize IHRT’s portfolio of digital assets following the recent acquisition of Triton Digital.”
• A more favorable cost structure, with savings on modernization and restructuring initiatives, as business trends normalize.
• Tailwinds for Sponsorships & Events due to pent-up demand for live events.
• Liberty Media’s approval to increase its stake in iHeartMedia to 50% and Global Media filing for approval to increase its stake to 50%.
• IHeartMedia has “manageable debt maturities with significant capacity to de-lever the business, facilitating a highly favorable capital structure shift in favor of equity.”

IHRT Price Action: Shares of iHeartMedia had risen by 8.70% to $19 at the time of publication Tuesday.

(Photo: Jeffrey Beall via Wiki Commons)