Saga Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGA) Short Interest Update

Saga Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 12,100 shares, a decline of 13.6% from the December 31st total of 14,000 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 23,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.5 days.

Insider Activity at Saga Communications

In other Saga Communications news, major shareholder Gate City Capital Management, bought 240,609 shares of Saga Communications stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $11.25 per share, for a total transaction of $2,706,851.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 863,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,718,256.25. This represents a 38.61 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Edward K. Christian Trust sold 2,326 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.10, for a total transaction of $28,144.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 962,280 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,643,588. This trade represents a 0.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,436 shares of company stock worth $42,270 in the last three months. Company insiders own 21.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Saga Communications by 1.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 361,325 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,691,000 after purchasing an additional 4,015 shares during the period. Peapod Lane Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Saga Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,675,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in Saga Communications by 5.9% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 122,744 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,933,000 after acquiring an additional 6,800 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Saga Communications by 5.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 53,679 shares of the company's stock valued at $771,000 after acquiring an additional 2,986 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Saga Communications by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 28,637 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 1,247 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.28% of the company's stock.

Saga Communications Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of SGA traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $12.53. The stock had a trading volume of 16,457 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,598. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.64 and a quick ratio of 2.64. Saga Communications has a 52-week low of $10.75 and a 52-week high of $24.70. The business's fifty day moving average is $12.00 and its 200 day moving average is $13.57. The firm has a market cap of $78.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.40 and a beta of 0.26.

Saga Communications (NASDAQ:SGA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $28.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.70 million. Saga Communications had a net margin of 4.24% and a return on equity of 3.22%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.45 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Saga Communications will post 0.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Saga Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 25th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.98%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 25th. Saga Communications's payout ratio is 138.89%.

Saga Communications Company Profile

Saga Communications, Inc, a media company, engages in acquiring, developing, and operating broadcast properties in the United States. The company's radio stations employ various programming formats, including classic hits, country, classic country, hot/soft/urban adult contemporary, oldies, classic rock, rock, and news/talk.