Saga Communications (NASDAQ:SGA) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $1.23 EPS

Saga Communications (NASDAQ:SGA) released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by $1.23, FiscalAI reports. Saga Communications had a return on equity of 0.18% and a net margin of 0.27%.The business had revenue of $26.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.70 million.

Saga Communications Trading Up 3.5%

Shares of Saga Communications stock opened at $11.39 on Thursday. Saga Communications has a 1 year low of $10.58 and a 1 year high of $14.27. The firm has a market cap of $73.34 million, a PE ratio of 227.76 and a beta of -0.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $11.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $11.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 2.74.

Saga Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 26th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 26th. Saga Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 2,000.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on SGA shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Saga Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Saga Communications from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Insider Buying and Selling at Saga Communications

In related news, major shareholder Edward K. Christian Trust sold 5,665 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.07, for a total value of $68,376.55. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 881,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,634,201.08. The trade was a 0.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 22.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Saga Communications

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SGA. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Saga Communications by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 33,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $386,000 after acquiring an additional 1,850 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Saga Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $163,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Saga Communications by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 59,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 1,923 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Saga Communications by 30,720.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after purchasing an additional 16,896 shares during the period. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Saga Communications by 256.7% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 3,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 2,867 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.28% of the company’s stock.

About Saga Communications

Saga Communications, Inc (NASDAQ: SGA) is an independent radio broadcasting company that owns and operates a portfolio of local radio stations across the United States. Headquartered in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, the company focuses on full?service radio properties offering a variety of formats, including music, news?talk and sports programming. In addition to traditional over?the?air broadcasts, Saga leverages web streaming and mobile platforms to broaden listener reach and provide advertisers with multimedia opportunities.

Founded in 1985 by Edward J.