National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $7.70.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $7.00 target price on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National CineMedia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. William Blair restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $7.50 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a report on Friday, March 7th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $8.00 price target on shares of National CineMedia in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Wedbush raised shares of National CineMedia from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $7.50 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th.

National CineMedia Price Performance

NCMI stock opened at $5.84 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $556.03 million, a P/E ratio of -23.36 and a beta of 2.19. National CineMedia has a 52-week low of $4.12 and a 52-week high of $7.60. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $6.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a current ratio of 2.46.

National CineMedia (NASDAQ:NCMI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The business services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $86.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.77 million. National CineMedia had a negative return on equity of 2.61% and a negative net margin of 9.49%. As a group, equities analysts expect that National CineMedia will post -0.12 EPS for the current year.

National CineMedia Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a — dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th. National CineMedia’s dividend payout ratio is currently -52.17%.

Insider Transactions at National CineMedia

In related news, major shareholder Blantyre Capital Ltd bought 103,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $5.18 per share, with a total value of $537,088.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,310,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,408,042.94. This represents a 1.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National CineMedia

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NCMI. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of National CineMedia in the 4th quarter worth $53,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets purchased a new stake in National CineMedia in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. DRW Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of National CineMedia during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of National CineMedia during the 4th quarter valued at $91,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in National CineMedia in the third quarter worth about $97,000. 69.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

National CineMedia Company Profile

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.