E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) Rating Lowered to "Sell" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded E.W. Scripps from “hold” to “sell.” Despite mixed analyst opinions, the stock has an overall “hold” consensus and an average price target of $5.90.
• SSP shares opened at $3.26, up 2.2%, but the company continues to report significant losses, including a quarterly EPS loss of $0.34, negative net margin of 58.02%, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.08.
• Institutional investors own 67.81% of E.W. Scripps, with several firms recently increasing their positions, including Creative Planning, which more than doubled its holdings.

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of E.W. Scripps in a research report on Wednesday. Benchmark cut their price objective on E.W. Scripps from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of E.W. Scripps from $4.70 to $3.80 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $5.90.

E.W. Scripps Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of SSP stock opened at $3.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.08, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. E.W. Scripps has a 52-week low of $2.02 and a 52-week high of $5.39. The company has a market capitalization of $302.10 million, a PE ratio of -0.23 and a beta of 0.65. The business's fifty day moving average is $3.08 and its 200 day moving average is $3.56.

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.34) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.53) by $0.19. The business had revenue of $490.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $511.65 million. E.W. Scripps had a negative return on equity of 4.58% and a negative net margin of 58.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in E.W. Scripps by 8.6% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 316,113 shares of the company's stock valued at $936,000 after purchasing an additional 25,070 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of E.W. Scripps in the 1st quarter worth about $117,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,516,298 shares of the company's stock worth $4,459,000 after purchasing an additional 10,957 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in shares of E.W. Scripps by 111.4% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 49,518 shares of the company's stock worth $146,000 after purchasing an additional 26,090 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of E.W. Scripps by 14.6% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 152,443 shares of the company's stock valued at $448,000 after purchasing an additional 19,393 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.81% of the company's stock.

E.W. Scripps Company Profile

The E.W. Scripps Company is a diversified U.S. media organization headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Established in 1878 by Edward Willis Scripps, the company began as a newspaper publisher before expanding into broadcast television, cable networks and digital journalism. Today, Scripps combines a legacy of local news reporting with a growing portfolio of national cable channels and digital platforms.

Scripps operates more than 60 television stations across over 40 markets, delivering local news, weather, sports and entertainment programming to communities in both large and mid-sized U.S.

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