Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) Receives $201.67 Consensus PT from Analysts

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) has received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the seven research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $201.67.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Nexstar Media Group from $221.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a report on Friday, August 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Nexstar Media Group from $207.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com downgraded Nexstar Media Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a report on Thursday, August 8th.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

Shares of Nexstar Media Group stock opened at $166.40 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $169.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $165.87. Nexstar Media Group has a 12 month low of $132.30 and a 12 month high of $187.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.92. The firm has a market cap of $5.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 1.49.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.48 by ($0.94). The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.28 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 18.65%. Nexstar Media Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.64 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Nexstar Media Group will post 25.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a dividend of $1.69 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $6.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.06%. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.19%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Sean Compton sold 3,930 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.61, for a total value of $631,197.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,715,957.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Nexstar Media Group news, insider Sean Compton sold 3,930 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.61, for a total transaction of $631,197.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,715,957.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Blake Russell sold 2,782 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.92, for a total value of $472,717.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,794,143.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,426 shares of company stock worth $5,116,478. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nexstar Media Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Nexstar Media Group by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,370,415 shares of the company’s stock valued at $580,689,000 after purchasing an additional 127,783 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Nexstar Media Group by 4.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,326,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $220,189,000 after buying an additional 62,331 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new position in Nexstar Media Group during the first quarter worth $92,323,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Nexstar Media Group by 392.6% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 450,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,593,000 after buying an additional 358,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Nexstar Media Group by 0.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 418,815 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,528,000 after buying an additional 2,145 shares in the last quarter. 95.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nexstar Media Group Company Profile

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.