iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) Released Earnings Last Week And Analysts Lifted Their Price Target To US$4.50

Shareholders might have noticed that iHeartMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:IHRT) filed its quarterly result this time last week. The early response was not positive, with shares down 5.8% to US$4.25 in the past week. Revenues were in line with expectations, at US$997m, while statutory losses ballooned to US$0.43 per share. Earnings are an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance, look at what the analysts are forecasting for next year, and see if there's been a change in sentiment towards the company. So we collected the latest post-earnings statutory consensus estimates to see what could be in store for next year.

We've found 21 US stocks that are forecast to pay a dividend yield of over 6% next year. See the full list for free.

Taking into account the latest results, the current consensus from iHeartMedia's four analysts is for revenues of US$4.07b in 2026. This would reflect a satisfactory 5.5% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Earnings are expected to improve, with iHeartMedia forecast to report a statutory profit of US$0.56 per share. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$4.02b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$0.42 in 2026. There was no real change to the revenue estimates, but the analysts do seem more bullish on earnings, given the sizeable expansion in earnings per share expectations following these results.

See our latest analysis for iHeartMedia

The analysts have been lifting their price targets on the back of the earnings upgrade, with the consensus price target rising 112% to US$4.50. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. There are some variant perceptions on iHeartMedia, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$5.00 and the most bearish at US$4.00 per share. With such a narrow range of valuations, the analysts apparently share similar views on what they think the business is worth.

These estimates are interesting, but it can be useful to paint some more broad strokes when seeing how forecasts compare, both to the iHeartMedia's past performance and to peers in the same industry. We can infer from the latest estimates that forecasts expect a continuation of iHeartMedia'shistorical trends, as the 4.4% annualised revenue growth to the end of 2026 is roughly in line with the 4.5% annual growth over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in a similar industry are forecast to see their revenues grow 2.7% per year. So although iHeartMedia is expected to maintain its revenue growth rate, it's definitely expected to grow faster than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing here is that the analysts upgraded their earnings per share estimates, suggesting that there has been a clear increase in optimism towards iHeartMedia following these results. Fortunately, they also reconfirmed their revenue numbers, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Additionally, our data suggests that revenue is expected to grow faster than the wider industry. We note an upgrade to the price target, suggesting that the analysts believes the intrinsic value of the business is likely to improve over time.

Following on from that line of thought, we think that the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. We have estimates - from multiple iHeartMedia analysts - going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here.

We don't want to rain on the parade too much, but we did also find 3 warning signs for iHeartMedia (2 are significant!) that you need to be mindful of.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.