Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) Hits New 12-Month Low - What's Next?

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $145.79 and last traded at $147.25, with a volume of 446272 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $150.67.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on NXST. Loop Capital raised shares of Nexstar Media Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $190.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Benchmark boosted their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $208.43.

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Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98. The company has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a PE ratio of 8.79, a PEG ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $163.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $164.22.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $7.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.22 by ($1.66). The company had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.48 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 26.03%. Equities research analysts predict that Nexstar Media Group, Inc. will post 21.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. This is an increase from Nexstar Media Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.69. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. Nexstar Media Group's payout ratio is presently 34.56%.

Insider Activity at Nexstar Media Group

In other Nexstar Media Group news, insider Andrew Alford sold 3,768 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.98, for a total transaction of $685,700.64. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $983,601.90. The trade was a 41.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Charles Thomas Mcmillen sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.51, for a total value of $339,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,975 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $843,312.25. The trade was a 28.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 39,105 shares of company stock valued at $6,722,463 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Nexstar Media Group

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its position in Nexstar Media Group by 27.6% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 4,287 shares of the company's stock valued at $709,000 after purchasing an additional 928 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 136.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 30,355 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,019,000 after buying an additional 17,535 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Nexstar Media Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $821,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 2.6% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 12,188 shares of the company's stock worth $2,015,000 after buying an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 16.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 45,051 shares of the company's stock worth $7,448,000 after acquiring an additional 6,475 shares during the period. 95.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.