National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $5.53, but opened at $5.71. National CineMedia shares last traded at $5.94, with a volume of 61,488 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on NCMI. William Blair reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $7.50 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $7.50 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barrington Research cut their price target on shares of National CineMedia from $8.25 to $7.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $8.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, National CineMedia presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $7.70.

National CineMedia Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $545.08 million, a PE ratio of -22.92 and a beta of 2.19. The company has a quick ratio of 2.46, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $6.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.77.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The business services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.06. National CineMedia had a negative return on equity of 2.61% and a negative net margin of 9.49%. The firm had revenue of $86.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.77 million. Research analysts expect that National CineMedia, Inc. will post -0.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at National CineMedia

In related news, EVP Maria Vg Woods sold 23,742 shares of National CineMedia stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.51, for a total transaction of $154,560.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 66,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $436,085.37. This trade represents a 26.17 % 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. Also, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd acquired 103,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $5.18 per share, with a total value of $537,088.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,310,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,408,042.94. This represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new position in National CineMedia in the 4th quarter valued at $384,000. State of Wyoming lifted its holdings in National CineMedia by 2,562.3% in the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 69,539 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 66,927 shares in the last quarter. Sycale Advisors NY LLC purchased a new position in shares of National CineMedia during the 4th quarter worth $14,147,000. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of National CineMedia during the 4th quarter worth $182,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of National CineMedia by 46.4% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 19,611 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $130,000 after acquiring an additional 6,217 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.49% of the company’s stock.

About National CineMedia

National CineMedia, Inc, through its subsidiary, National CineMedia, LLC, operates cinema advertising network in North America. It engages in the sale of advertising to national, regional, and local businesses in Noovie, a cinema advertising and entertainment show seen on movie screens; and sells advertising on its Lobby Entertainment Network, a series of strategically-placed screens located in movie theater lobbies, as well as other forms of advertising and promotions in theatre lobbies.