Norges Bank Invests $44.46 Million in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST)

Norges Bank bought a new position in Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 281,444 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $44,460,000. Norges Bank owned 0.91% of Nexstar Media Group as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NXST. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 27,180.2% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,206,877 shares of the company's stock valued at $190,650,000 after buying an additional 1,202,453 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Nexstar Media Group by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,102,126 shares of the company's stock valued at $174,103,000 after purchasing an additional 18,675 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 403,728 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,777,000 after purchasing an additional 19,116 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Nexstar Media Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 277,297 shares of the company's stock worth $43,656,000 after purchasing an additional 4,457 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Nexstar Media Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,560,000. 95.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on NXST shares. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Nexstar Media Group from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital upgraded Nexstar Media Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $190.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Nexstar Media Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $208.43.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ NXST traded up $11.61 on Wednesday, reaching $159.40. 834,503 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 364,845. Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $143.55 and a fifty-two week high of $191.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market cap of $4.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $163.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $164.39.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $7.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $9.22 by ($1.66). Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 26.03%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.48 billion. 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were given a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.67%. This is an increase from Nexstar Media Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.69. Nexstar Media Group's dividend payout ratio is 34.56%.

Insider Transactions at Nexstar Media Group

In other Nexstar Media Group news, insider Andrew Alford sold 3,768 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.98, for a total transaction of $685,700.64. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $983,601.90. This represents a 41.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles Thomas Mcmillen sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.51, for a total value of $339,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly 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. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.