StockNews.com Lowers Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) to Hold

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

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

Nexstar Media Group Price Performance

Shares of Nexstar Media Group stock opened at $166.45 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $5.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 1.78. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $170.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $165.64. Nexstar Media Group has a one year low of $132.30 and a one year high of $187.27.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.48 by ($0.94). The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.28 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a return on equity of 18.65% and a net margin of 8.68%. Nexstar Media Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.64 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Nexstar Media Group will post 25.72 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nexstar Media Group news, CFO Lee Ann Gliha sold 984 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 8,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,277,906.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Nexstar Media Group news, Director Charles Thomas Mcmillen sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $160,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,276,000. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Lee Ann Gliha sold 984 shares of the company’s 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,277,906.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,644 shares of company stock worth $2,604,000. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nexstar Media Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NXST. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group during the 1st quarter worth $92,323,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 392.6% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 450,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,593,000 after purchasing an additional 358,920 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group during the 4th quarter worth $51,812,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,370,415 shares of the company’s stock worth $580,689,000 after purchasing an additional 127,783 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Payden & Rygel Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group during the 1st quarter worth $15,144,000. 95.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.