National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) Declares $0.03 -- Dividend

National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI - Get Free Report) declared a -- dividend on Wednesday, March 12th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be paid a dividend of 0.03 per share by the business services provider on Monday, April 7th. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th.

National CineMedia has a dividend payout ratio of 63.2% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect National CineMedia to earn $0.21 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.12 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 57.1%.

National CineMedia Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of National CineMedia stock traded down $0.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $5.80. 251,570 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 612,351. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 2.46. National CineMedia has a 1-year low of $4.12 and a 1-year high of $7.60. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $6.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $552.41 million, a PE ratio of -23.14 and a beta of 2.19.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The business services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $84.77 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that National CineMedia will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NCMI has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $7.00 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 14th. Wedbush upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $7.50 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $8.00 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, William Blair restated a "neutral" rating and set a $7.50 price objective on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, National CineMedia currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $7.70.

Insider Transactions at National CineMedia

In related news, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd purchased 103,685 shares of National CineMedia stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $5.18 per share, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Maria Vg Woods sold 23,742 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.51, for a total transaction of $154,560.42. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 66,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $436,085.37. The trade was a 26.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

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.