National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $7.39 and last traded at $7.34, with a volume of 310604 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $7.12.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on NCMI. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $8.00 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $7.50 price objective (up from $6.00) on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Monday. Barrington Research upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $7.50 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, B. Riley lifted their price target on shares of National CineMedia from $7.50 to $8.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, National CineMedia presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $7.88.

National CineMedia Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $704.96 million, a PE ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 2.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 2.45. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.76.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The business services provider reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $54.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $49.87 million. National CineMedia had a net margin of 78.04% and a return on equity of 3.50%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.07) EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that National CineMedia, Inc. will post -0.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National CineMedia

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NCMI. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in National CineMedia by 124.9% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 469,338 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,309,000 after acquiring an additional 260,689 shares in the last quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC purchased a new position in National CineMedia during the 3rd quarter worth $461,000. OmniStar Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of National CineMedia during the third quarter worth about $566,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of National CineMedia by 141.2% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 30,929 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 18,108 shares during the period. Finally, Luxor Capital Group LP raised its stake in National CineMedia by 1,581.1% in the 2nd quarter. Luxor Capital Group LP now owns 490,809 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,155,000 after acquiring an additional 461,614 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.49% of the company’s stock.

National CineMedia Company Profile

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.