Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Benchmark restated a buy rating and issued a $225.00 target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Nexstar Media Group from $207.00 to $205.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Barrington Research reiterated an outperform rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $221.00 to $209.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $201.67.

Nexstar Media Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NXST opened at $167.66 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 1.50. The company’s 50-day moving average is $170.02 and its 200 day moving average is $165.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 1.78. Nexstar Media Group has a fifty-two week low of $132.30 and a fifty-two week high of $187.27.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.48 by ($0.94). The company had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 18.65%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.64 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Nexstar Media Group will post 25.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $1.69 dividend. This represents a $6.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nexstar Media Group

In related news, CFO Lee Ann Gliha sold 984 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.63, for a total value of $155,107.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 8,107 shares in the company, valued at $1,277,906.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Nexstar Media Group news, CFO Lee Ann Gliha sold 984 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.63, for a total value of $155,107.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 8,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,277,906.41. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles Thomas Mcmillen sold 1,000 shares of Nexstar Media Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $160,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,276,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 27,644 shares of company stock valued at $4,643,760 in the last three months. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nexstar Media Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Whittier Trust Co. purchased a new stake in Nexstar Media Group during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 632.1% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 205 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 3,700.0% during the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 41.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 295 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Nexstar Media Group by 112.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 295 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. 95.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Nexstar Media Group Company Profile

Nexstar Media Group, Inc operates as a diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports and entertainment content across the television and digital platforms in the United States. It owns, operates, programs, or provides sales and other services to various markets; and offers television programming services.