Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) Trading Down 5.3% Following Analyst Downgrade

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) dropped 5.3% on Tuesday after Zacks Research downgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong sell rating. The company traded as low as $182.11 and last traded at $181.5810. Approximately 87,154 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 390,848 shares. The stock had previously closed at $191.73.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $290.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Nexstar Media Group from $270.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $253.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.00.

Insider Activity

In other Nexstar Media Group news, insider Dana Zimmer sold 915 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.42, for a total value of $161,424.30. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,012,297.96. The trade was a 13.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, COO Michael Biard sold 1,227 shares of Nexstar Media Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.21, for a total transaction of $213,755.67. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 17,105 shares in the company, valued at $2,979,862.05. This represents a 6.69% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 22,813 shares of company stock valued at $4,174,731 over the last quarter. Insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nexstar Media Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NXST. Sentinel Dome Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Nexstar Media Group during the 4th quarter valued at $2,315,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 773,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,114,000 after acquiring an additional 13,084 shares during the period. CPC Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 114.3% during the first quarter. CPC Advisors LLC now owns 26,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,819,000 after acquiring an additional 14,217 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 3,648.3% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 64,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,197,000 after purchasing an additional 63,261 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 2,573.4% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 140,112 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,494,000 after purchasing an additional 134,871 shares during the period. 95.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Up 0.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $179.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $200.19.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $3.61 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.98 by ($2.37). The business had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 3.20% and a return on equity of 24.26%. Nexstar Media Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 62.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.06 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 37.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Nexstar Media Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 142.80%.

About Nexstar Media Group

Nexstar Media Group, Inc is a diversified American media company engaged primarily in the ownership, operation and strategic affiliation of local television stations, digital platforms and cable networks. The company provides a range of broadcast content, including local news, sports coverage, entertainment programming and syndicated shows, reaching audiences in more than 100 television markets across the United States.

Founded in 1996 by entrepreneur Perry Sook and headquartered in Irving, Texas, Nexstar has built its presence through organic growth and a series of high-profile acquisitions.