Harspring Capital Management LLC Decreases Stake in News Co. (NASDAQ:NWSA)

Harspring Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of News Co. (NASDAQ:NWSA - Free Report) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 756,500 shares of the company's stock after selling 65,000 shares during the period. News accounts for approximately 5.9% of Harspring Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Harspring Capital Management LLC owned about 0.13% of News worth $20,834,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of News by 2,392.9% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,005 shares during the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in News during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in News in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of News by 49.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,989 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of News in the 3rd quarter valued at $85,000. 66.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

News Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NWSA stock traded up $0.19 during trading on Friday, hitting $25.86. 2,980,969 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,802,958. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $27.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 1.73. News Co. has a twelve month low of $22.65 and a twelve month high of $30.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.43 and a beta of 1.24.

News (NASDAQ:NWSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.04. News had a net margin of 4.22% and a return on equity of 5.31%. As a group, analysts forecast that News Co. will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

News Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. News's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on NWSA shares. StockNews.com cut shares of News from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of News from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded News to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on News from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of News from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $38.80.

News Profile

News Corporation, a media and information services company, creates and distributes authoritative and engaging content, and other products and services for consumers and businesses worldwide. It operates through six segments: Digital Real Estate Services, Subscription Video Services, Dow Jones, Book Publishing, News Media, and Other.