News Co. (NASDAQ:NWSA) Shares Sold by Wells Fargo & Company MN

Wells Fargo & Company MN lowered its position in News Co. (NASDAQ:NWSA - Free Report) by 18.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 131,805 shares of the company's stock after selling 30,645 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN's holdings in News were worth $3,630,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWSA. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of News by 2,392.9% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares in the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in News during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in News during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in News by 49.7% during the fourth 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 period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of News in the third quarter worth $85,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.97% of the company's stock.

News Trading Up 3.3 %

NASDAQ:NWSA opened at $26.18 on Wednesday. News Co. has a one year low of $22.65 and a one year high of $30.69. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $27.12 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. The stock has a market cap of $14.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.86 and a beta of 1.24.

News (NASDAQ:NWSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share 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, sell-side analysts predict that News Co. will post 0.94 earnings per share 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 issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. News's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NWSA. Citigroup began coverage on shares of News in a research report on Friday, January 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $36.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com downgraded News from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group upgraded News from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Guggenheim upped their price target on News from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of News from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently 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.

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