Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXST) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $208.43.

A number of analysts have recently commented on NXST shares. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital raised Nexstar Media Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $200.00 in a report on Friday, February 28th. Benchmark raised their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Nexstar Media Group from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Nexstar Media Group in a research report on Monday, March 10th.

Nexstar Media Group Stock Performance

Shares of NXST stock opened at $174.52 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $158.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $163.82. The stock has a market cap of $5.32 billion, a PE ratio of 10.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98. Nexstar Media Group has a 12 month low of $146.04 and a 12 month high of $191.86.

Nexstar Media Group (NASDAQ:NXST) last posted 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 business had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. Nexstar Media Group had a return on equity of 26.03% and a net margin of 11.39%. On average, equities analysts expect that Nexstar Media Group will post 21.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nexstar Media Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.26%. This is an increase from Nexstar Media Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.69. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. Nexstar Media Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nexstar Media Group

In other news, insider Gary Weitman sold 1,241 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.21, for a total transaction of $219,917.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $704,409.75. The trade was a 23.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Lee Ann Gliha sold 330 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.23, for a total transaction of $52,215.90. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 8,610 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,362,360.30. This trade represents a 3.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 126,250 shares of company stock worth $20,450,616. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nexstar Media Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Nexstar Media Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Nexstar Media Group in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in Nexstar Media Group in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Nexstar Media Group during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Nexstar Media Group by 15.3% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.30% of the company’s stock.

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.