William Bardeen Sells 13,000 Shares of New York Times (NYSE:NYT) Stock

The New York Times Company (NYSE:NYT) EVP William Bardeen sold 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.56, for a total transaction of $1,034,280.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,486,260.36. This represents a 41.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

New York Times Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:NYT opened at $80.39 on Friday. The New York Times Company has a 52 week low of $44.83 and a 52 week high of $82.74. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $73.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.08. The company has a market cap of $13.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.46, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.09.

New York Times (NYSE:NYT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. New York Times had a return on equity of 20.73% and a net margin of 12.18%.The business had revenue of $802.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $791.55 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.80 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that The New York Times Company will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

New York Times Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st. This is an increase from New York Times’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. New York Times’s payout ratio is presently 34.45%.

Key New York Times News

Here are the key news stories impacting New York Times this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Breaking international coverage and live updates on attacks in Tehran/Beirut/Tel Aviv should drive heavy traffic and subscription interest for NYT’s digital platform, supporting revenue potential from subscriptions and ads. Live Updates: Tehran, Beirut and Tel Aviv Are Targeted in Attacks and Counterattacks
• Positive Sentiment: Jobs-report coverage and related business briefings attract business audiences (higher lifetime-value subscribers) and advertiser spend, a near-term revenue positive for a news subscription model. Live Updates: Strong Hiring Likely Continued Early This Year
• Positive Sentiment: The company recently increased its quarterly dividend (new quarterly payout noted by market coverage), which can appeal to income-focused investors and signal cash?flow confidence. MarketBeat: NYT profile and dividend details
• Neutral Sentiment: Feature, sports and culture pieces (e.g., lifestyle stories around celebrity residencies and Athletic sports coverage) sustain daily engagement but are less likely to move near?term investor sentiment materially. They Can’t Stay at Harry’s House, So They’ll Stay With Fellow Fans
• Negative Sentiment: Chairman Arthur G. Sulzberger sold 13,000 shares (about a 7% disclosed reduction) in early March — insider sales can create negative optics and increase selling pressure. SEC filing: Sulzberger sale
• Negative Sentiment: EVP William Bardeen sold 13,000 shares (~41% reduction of his disclosed holding) at ~ $79.56 — large, concentrated insider selling can amplify investor concern and weigh on the stock. SEC filing: Bardeen sale
• Negative Sentiment: Weak macro headlines and a broad market drop after the jobs report are pressuring media and growth stocks generally, contributing to NYT’s share weakness today. Stocks Drop as Weak Jobs Report Adds to Uncertain Outlook

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New York Times

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in New York Times during the 1st quarter valued at about $442,000. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in shares of New York Times by 52.2% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 11,640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $577,000 after purchasing an additional 3,990 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of New York Times by 690.7% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 846 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 739 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of New York Times by 7.8% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 111,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,221,000 after purchasing an additional 8,076 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of New York Times by 4,591.7% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares during the last quarter. 95.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on NYT shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of New York Times from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of New York Times in a report on Thursday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of New York Times from $71.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays boosted their price target on New York Times from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Guggenheim set a $63.00 price target on New York Times and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.43.

About New York Times

The New York Times Company is a publicly traded media organization best known for publishing The New York Times newspaper and operating the NYTimes.com digital platform. The company produces daily print and digital journalism covering national and international news, opinion pieces, feature stories, and multimedia content. Alongside its flagship newspaper, the firm offers a range of subscription-based services, including Times Cooking, NYT Games, podcasts and newsletters, designed to engage a broad audience of readers and advertisers.

Founded in 1851 by Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones, The New York Times has built a reputation for in-depth reporting and investigative journalism.