Barclays PLC Sells 85,784 Shares of National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI)

Barclays PLC cut its holdings in National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI - Free Report) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,129,729 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 85,784 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned 1.19% of National CineMedia worth $7,502,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in National CineMedia by 23.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,157,488 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $8,160,000 after buying an additional 222,498 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in National CineMedia by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,961,963 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $13,835,000 after purchasing an additional 15,605 shares during the last quarter. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new stake in National CineMedia in the 4th quarter valued at $408,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in National CineMedia by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 476,468 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,164,000 after purchasing an additional 7,130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 12,281 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.49% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at National CineMedia

In related news, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd purchased 103,685 shares of the firm's 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 purchase, the insider now directly owns 10,310,433 shares of the company's stock, valued at $53,408,042.94. This trade represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

National CineMedia Price Performance

NCMI stock traded up $0.09 during trading on Friday, hitting $5.90. The company had a trading volume of 308,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 611,906. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $6.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $6.54. National CineMedia, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $4.12 and a fifty-two week high of $7.60. The company has a market cap of $561.63 million, a P/E ratio of -23.60 and a beta of 1.92. 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 (NASDAQ:NCMI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The business services provider reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $86.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.77 million. National CineMedia had a negative net margin of 9.49% and a negative return on equity of 2.61%. Equities research analysts expect that National CineMedia, Inc. will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National CineMedia Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a -- dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 24th were issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 24th. National CineMedia's dividend payout ratio is -52.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on NCMI shares. William Blair reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $7.50 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Wedbush upgraded National CineMedia from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $7.50 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and set a $8.00 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $7.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of National CineMedia from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $7.70.

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.