Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Grows Position in National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 728,915 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,218 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 0.77% of National CineMedia worth $4,840,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ieq Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of National CineMedia during the 4th quarter valued at about $93,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of National CineMedia in the third quarter worth about $97,000. Centiva Capital LP bought a new position in National CineMedia during the third quarter valued at approximately $219,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in National CineMedia by 39.7% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 43,210 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 12,281 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in National CineMedia during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $292,000. 69.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at National CineMedia

In related news, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd bought 103,685 shares of National CineMedia stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $5.18 per share, with a total value of $537,088.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,310,433 shares in the company, valued at $53,408,042.94. The trade was a 1.02 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Maria Vg Woods sold 23,742 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.51, for a total value of $154,560.42. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 66,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $436,085.37. The trade was a 26.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on NCMI shares. William Blair reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $7.50 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $8.00 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of National CineMedia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Wedbush upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $7.50 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $7.00 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $7.70.

National CineMedia Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NCMI opened at $5.90 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.70. The company has a market cap of $561.74 million, a P/E ratio of -23.60 and a beta of 2.19. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. National CineMedia, Inc. has a twelve month low of $4.12 and a twelve month high of $7.60.

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

National CineMedia Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a — dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be paid a $0.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th. National CineMedia’s payout ratio is -52.17%.

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.