Gray Media Inc. (NYSE:GTN) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Gray Media Inc. (NYSE:GTN) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $7.75.

Several research analysts have recently commented on GTN shares. Zacks Research raised Gray Media from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Gray Media in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Gray Media from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Gray Media from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Gray Media from $5.00 to $5.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gray Media

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GTN. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Gray Media by 55.3% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,878,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,932,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025,133 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Gray Media by 23.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,188,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,113,000 after purchasing an additional 994,474 shares during the period. Penn Capital Management Company LLC boosted its stake in Gray Media by 43.6% in the 3rd quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC now owns 3,236,997 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,758,000 after purchasing an additional 983,415 shares during the period. DSC Meridian Capital LP purchased a new stake in Gray Media during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $5,432,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Gray Media by 76.6% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,361,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,169,000 after buying an additional 590,704 shares during the last quarter. 78.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gray Media Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of Gray Media stock opened at $5.06 on Monday. Gray Media has a 1-year low of $3.13 and a 1-year high of $6.30. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $4.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $516.56 million, a PE ratio of -3.56 and a beta of 0.89.

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.24) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.28) by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $792.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $780.50 million. Gray Media had a negative return on equity of 2.51% and a negative net margin of 2.75%.Gray Media’s revenue was down 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.59 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Gray Media will post 3.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Gray Media Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. Gray Media’s dividend payout ratio is currently -22.54%.

About Gray Media

Gray Media (NYSE:GTN) is a U.S.-based broadcasting and digital media company that owns and operates a portfolio of local television stations and associated digital platforms. The company’s core business centers on delivering local news, sports and entertainment programming through its network-affiliated broadcast outlets. In addition to traditional over-the-air distribution, Gray Media supports multi-platform video streaming and on-demand services for audiences across its markets.

Gray Media’s television stations carry network programming from major national broadcasters, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and The CW, and often feature locally produced news and public affairs content.