Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) has received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the eight analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $199.71.

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $221.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Nexstar Media Group from $207.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com cut Nexstar Media Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Benchmark decreased their price objective on Nexstar Media Group from $225.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $200.00 to $198.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th.

Insider Activity at Nexstar Media Group

In other news, CFO Lee Ann Gliha sold 984 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.63, for a total value of $155,107.92. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 8,107 shares in the company, valued at $1,277,906.41. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Sean Compton sold 3,930 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.61, for a total transaction of $631,197.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,715,957.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Lee Ann Gliha sold 984 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.63, for a total value of $155,107.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 8,107 shares in the company, valued at $1,277,906.41. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 41,112 shares of company stock worth $6,887,029. 6.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nexstar Media Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CX Institutional grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,396 shares of the company’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Granite Group Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 5.1% during the first quarter. Granite Group Advisors LLC now owns 1,489 shares of the company’s stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 7.3% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $181,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 0.6% in the second quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 13,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,308,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 2.3% in the second quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 4,217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $700,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.30% of the company’s stock.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

Shares of NXST stock opened at $183.25 on Thursday. 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 market cap of $5.91 billion, a PE ratio of 14.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 1.48. Nexstar Media Group has a 1 year low of $140.92 and a 1 year high of $187.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $168.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $166.75.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.48 by ($0.94). Nexstar Media Group had a return on equity of 18.65% and a net margin of 8.68%. The business had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.64 earnings per share. Nexstar Media Group’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Nexstar Media Group will post 25.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $6.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.69%. Nexstar Media Group’s payout ratio is 53.14%.

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.