Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its position in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) by 32.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 70,512 shares of the company’s stock after selling 33,499 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.22% of Nexstar Media Group worth $11,659,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new position in Nexstar Media Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 3,700.0% in the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 117.8% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 112.2% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 295 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mascoma Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Nexstar Media Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.30% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Nexstar Media Group news, Director Charles Thomas Mcmillen sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.44, for a total transaction of $41,110.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,270,299. This trade represents a 3.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Perry A. Sook sold 12,239 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.28, for a total transaction of $2,328,836.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 674,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $128,380,774.32. The trade was a 1.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 48,437 shares of company stock valued at $8,429,561. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

Shares of Nexstar Media Group stock opened at $161.84 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $141.38 and a 52 week high of $191.86. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $168.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.48.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $5.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.51 by ($0.24). Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 26.03%. The company had revenue of $1.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.37 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 24.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $1.69 dividend. This represents a $6.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Nexstar Media Group’s payout ratio is currently 39.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Nexstar Media Group from $221.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Loop Capital cut Nexstar Media Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $200.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group from $200.00 to $198.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Nexstar Media Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $198.50.

About Nexstar Media Group

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.