National CineMedia’s (NCMI) “Outperform” Rating Reaffirmed at Barrington Research

Barrington Research reissued their outperform rating on shares of National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) in a report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $7.00 price objective on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Wedbush raised National CineMedia from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $7.50 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday. William Blair reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $7.50 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $8.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $7.70.

National CineMedia Trading Up 4.2 %

NASDAQ:NCMI opened at $5.95 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a current ratio of 2.46. The company has a market capitalization of $566.50 million, a P/E ratio of -23.80 and a beta of 2.19. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $6.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.75. National CineMedia has a 52 week low of $4.05 and a 52 week high of $7.60.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The business services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $86.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.77 million. National CineMedia had a negative net margin of 9.49% and a negative return on equity of 2.61%. On average, research analysts forecast that National CineMedia will post -0.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd purchased 300,000 shares of National CineMedia stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $5.12 per share, with a total value of $1,536,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 10,250,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,483,691.52. This trade represents a 3.01 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Maria Vg Woods sold 23,742 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.51, for a total transaction of $154,560.42. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 66,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $436,085.37. The trade was a 26.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National CineMedia

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of National CineMedia by 5.6% during the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 6,936,947 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $48,905,000 after purchasing an additional 365,360 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in National CineMedia by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,923,516 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,412,000 after buying an additional 132,895 shares in the last quarter. Sycale Advisors NY LLC bought a new stake in National CineMedia in the 4th quarter valued at $14,147,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of National CineMedia by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,961,963 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $13,835,000 after acquiring an additional 15,605 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of National CineMedia by 23.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,157,488 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,160,000 after acquiring an additional 222,498 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.49% of the company’s stock.

About National CineMedia

National CineMedia, Inc, through its subsidiary, National CineMedia, LLC, operates cinema advertising network in North America. It engages in the sale of advertising to national, regional, and local businesses in Noovie, a cinema advertising and entertainment show seen on movie screens; and sells advertising on its Lobby Entertainment Network, a series of strategically-placed screens located in movie theater lobbies, as well as other forms of advertising and promotions in theatre lobbies.